Gem Tintypes
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then so is this #tinytuesday
This lovely gem tintype printed album is made of deeply embossed wine leather with a Maltese cross at its center. The spine and pages are edged in gilt and fastened with a gilt brass clasp. Manufactured by Remick & Rice of Cambridge, MA in 1867, this album has slots for 96 photographs.
Gem tintypes are small photographs ranging up to 1 inch wide and 1 ¼ inches high. The earliest gems date to the late 1850s and this kind of photography became increasingly prolific in America during the 1860s. Popularity grew due to the inexpensive cost and ability to mount the gems on jewelry or in albums such as this. While there were several gem tintype album manufacturers throughout America, Remick & Rice were the major producer as they offered page varieties for the photos.
All the gem photographs in this album are identified, including the young woman pictured on the tip right. Nannie Jenckes Brayton (1853-1905) was the eldest child of David Anthony Brayton Sr. (1824-1881) and Nancy Roxanna [Jenckes] Brayton (1827-1909). Nannie and her family lived in the beautiful mansion that now houses the FRHS!