Child with Drum (1850s): Art, History and Details

Child with Drum (1850s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

For this finely toned daguerreotype, an unknown photographer skillfully manipulated a bulky camera into a low vantagepoint, ensured even lighting, and positioned the quaintly dressed subject against a neutral background to create a charming portrait. The child was carefully coached to stare directly into the lens and to hold the toy drum and drumsticks convincingly. Perhaps the drum is meant to recall earlier times in American history and to symbolize its fight for independence.

Object facts

• Title: Child with Drum
• Date: 1850s
• Culture: America
• Type: Photograph
• Technique: daguerreotype, quarter-plate
• Dimensions: Image: 8.3 x 7 cm (3 1/4 x 2 3/4 in.); Case: 12.7 x 10.5 cm (5 x 4 1/8 in.); Matted: 61 x 50.8 cm (24 x 20 in.)
• Collection: PH - American 19th Century
• Department: Photography
• Accession number: 2002.33

Collection credit

John L. Severance Fund

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.