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The image shows a young girl standing next to a piece of furniture covered with a patterned cloth, upon which a cat is resting. Her hair is neatly combed and parted to the side. She is wearing a dark patterned dress with a white lace collar. The girl is resting her hand on the furniture where the cat lies. The background of the image is plain and the photograph is set in an ornate gold-colored frame with scalloped edges.
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The image shows a young girl standing next to a piece of furniture covered with a patterned cloth, upon which a cat is resting. Her hair is neatly combed and parted to the side. She is wearing a dark patterned dress with a white lace collar. The girl is resting her hand on the furniture where the cat lies. The background of the image is plain and the photograph is set in an ornate gold-colored frame with scalloped edges.

National Gallery of Art · Photograph

"Charles Aaron and His Cat"

American 19th Century

Date
c. 1848
Medium
daguerreotype
Dimensions
image (visible): 5.7 × 4.2 cm (2 1/4 × 1 5/8 in.) mat: 6.4 × 5.2 cm (2 1/2 × 2 1/16 in.) case (closed): 7.6 × 6.4 × 2.5 cm (3 × 2 1/2 × 1 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Accession number
2023.146.25
Credit line
The Ross J. Kelbaugh Collection
Time span
1826 to 1850
Department
CPH
Original NGA record

Subjects and terms

  • portrait
  • American
  • daguerreotype
  • Cat
  • Boy
Provenance

Ross Kelbaugh, Marriottsville, MD, 1978; gift to NGA, 2023.

Inscription

by unknown hand, top edge of case in black ink on applied sticker: F / 15; by Ross Kelbaugh, bottom edge of case in black ink on applied sticker: KF01

NGA object ID 227301. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.