27 June 2011

A branded hand

This Daguerreotype was taken by Southworth Aug. 1845 it is a copy of Captain Jonathan Walker’s hand as branded by the U.S. Marshall of the Dist. of Florida for having helped 7 men to obtain ‘Life Liberty, and Happiness.’…

The brand is “S.S.” for “Slave Stealer”.
Text and image from The Daguerreian Society, via Historical Indulgences.

3 comments:

  1. FunderJune 27, 2011 at 10:24 PM

    Is it a mirror image of his right hand? Sadly I don't know much about old photography.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Stan B.June 28, 2011 at 12:46 AM

    Funder- Yes, reversals also occurred with tintypes (why so many mistakenly thought Billy The Kid left handed).

    Stan- thank you for this (and the portrait of John "Pottawatomie" Brown is superb)!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Rob MillerJune 28, 2011 at 9:20 AM

    Thanks for posting! This is a spectacularly moving picture.

    ReplyDelete