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Antique sepia photographic portrait of a young girl, fired/transferred onto a glazed ceramic tile, believed to date to the 1870s–1880s based on her ringlet hairstyle and ruffled high collar dress.
• Tile measures approximately 6” x 6” x 1/2” thick
• Front: glossy glazed surface bearing the photographic image, with fine age-related crazing (surface craquelure) throughout — consistent with the tile’s age
• Back: unglazed, sandy tan-gray body with horizontal extrusion striations; no mortar or cement residue present
• One corner shows a small chip where the glaze has separated from the underlying body, visible in photos — this actually helps confirm the tile’s genuine layered construction (glaze fired over a ceramic body, not a modern print or decal)
• No maker’s mark, studio stamp, or inscription has been found on the piece; sitter is unidentified
Condition: Sold as-is, given age. Please review all photos closely, including the close-up of the corner chip and the surface crazing, as they are considered part of the item’s condition and character rather than defects to be restored.
A nice piece for collectors of Victorian photographica, early photo-on-ceramic processes, or costume/social history.
