Existing comment:
Ledger book of William Bache, with associated pieces
Inexpensive silhouettes were a popular form of portraiture from about 1790 to 1840, when the invention of photography made them obsolete. Englishman William Bache, who compiled this sample book of 1,846 silhouettes that he had made in America, came to New Orleans in about 1803, after working first in Philadelphia. The cut portraits that he made in this southern city included those of the last Spanish military governor of the Louisiana Territory, Sebastian Calvo de la Puerta, Marquess of Casa Calvo; the new governor of the American territory, William, C. C. Claiborne; artist Ambrose Duval; numerous New Orleans tradespeople, civil servants, and their families; as well as portraits of African Americans, who comprised a large part of the population.
William Bache, c 1803-1809 |