Published by West Companies, Inc. Requests for information should be emailed to: PhotographicJewelry@Yahoo.com

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TOKENS OF AFFECTION AND REGARD NOW $80.00

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ANTIQUE PHOTOGRAPHIC JEWELRY,

TOKENS OF AFFECTION AND REGARD

A sumptuously photographed coffee-table book, Tokens traces the historic development of photography, and the cultural needs photo-jewelry was perfectly positioned to fill in both America & Europe. It also reviews the largest photographic galleries of the 1840-1865 period (that produced photo-jewelry), explaining how they operated & competed as businesses: assembly, marketing, distribution, and pricing----in a very competitive market.

Based on over 10 years of research, Tokens’ 256 pages include nearly 300 illustrations contributed by over three dozen private and institutional sources, from the United States and overseas. The book includes photo-jewelry pieces from England, France, Germany, and The Netherlands. Most of the illustrations are previously unpublished.

Photo-jewelry was primarily for remembrance, a readily available, affordable way to say I love you, and I want you to love me. It was a perfect gift for everything from Valentines Day, or the birth of a baby, to a soldier leaving for the Civil War---or mourning and remembrance for the soldiers who never returned. These vintage jewelry pieces, from the Victorian period, are an integral part of both American and European history.

Tokens was researched and written by Larry J. West and Patricia A. Abbott, with contributing experts Joyce Jonas (for jewelry); Grant Romer (for daguerreotypes), and Joan Severa (for fashion and costume).

The first edition of Tokens is a true collectible. Limited to 1,500 copies, it has the appearance of a historic bound volume encased entirely in engraved gold. The padded cover, back, and inside end-sheets, are gold tinted photographs of an actual gold photo-jewelry piece, called appropriately---a booklet. With its booklet-style gilding, it looks like this:

Photo-booklet, portraits of a man and woman in bottle curls, engraved, magnified as cover of this book. Daguerreotypes, c. 1850

The beauty & research findings revealed on Tokens is apparent from its Table of Contents:

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CONTENTS

FORWARD / 9

PREFACE / 13

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS / 15

Chapter 1

AN INTRODUCTION TO PHOTO-JEWELRY / 19

PORTRAIT MINIATURES AND AMERICAN FOLK ART

Chapter 2

CATEGORIES OF PHOTO-JEWELRY / 35

DECORATIVE, FUNCTIONAL, COMMEMORATIVE USES

Chapter 3

AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN PIECES / 93

Chapter 4

THE 19TH CENTURY WOMAN / 111

PHOTO-JEWELRY, ACCESSORIES, AND PRIVACY

Chapter 5

THE PHOTO-JEWELRY INDUSTRY / 123

MOUNTINGS, MANUFACTURING, DISTRIBUTION, PRICING, AND RETAILING TWELVE GALLERIES:

George N. Barnard, Mathew Brady, John Fitzgibbon, Jeremiah and Benjamin Gurney, Luther H. Hale; McClees & Germon, John Plumbe, Jr., Marcus A. Root:

Southworth & Hawes; Augustus Washington; Whipple & Black, and Jesse S. Wooley

Chapter 6

IDENTIFICATION, COLLECTING, AND RESEARCH / 199

Chapter 7

REFERENCE COMPENDIUM / 211

Appendix

HELPFUL DOCUMENTS / 231

AFTERWORD: A COLLECTOR’S REFLECTIONS / 241

GLOSSARY / 242

AUTHORS’ BIOGRAPHIES / 244

ILLUSTRATION CREDITS / 246

INDEX / 249

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Tokens appeals to anyone interested in American history, photography, jewelry, or the decorative arts. It embraces history, culture, tradition, love, birth, death, fashion, ideals of beauty, privacy in personal relations, and remembrance. And not just in America, but in Europe, and in many respects the world. An excerpt from the Introduction helps set this stage:

Most major industrialized countries experienced the explosive popularity of photography and its use in jewelry, although vogue for it was greatest in England, France, Germany, and the United States. Queen Victoria increased worldwide acceptance of the taste by wearing and collecting a variety of photo-jewelry—making a fashion statement that many embraced, first in the United Kingdom, and then in North America. Photo-jewelry’s acceptance i n America was rapid, like that of photography itself. The moneyed class in every Western country had long enjoyed the painted portrait miniature. But photo-jewelry offered almost all the same attributes, and in addition, an exact mirror image of a loved one, in a small, jewel-like, wearable object of charm and sometimes great beauty. A personal item to be shown off proudly in public, or cherished in private. An heirloom to hand down to future generations. A permanent record. No wonder the exchange of gifts of photo-jewelry became a tradition lasting for many decades —in both America and Europe.

It is an interesting, fun, educational book for a variety of readers, from those interested in photographic and American/European history, to decorative arts, culture, folk art, or simply something new----whether it’s reading for general information, research, collecting, or just plain relaxing with the “good-old-days”.

If you are considering placing an order, and wonder if it’s contents will be helpful, here is a list of the primary subjects and illustrations, as each illustration is associated within the book.

* Album page; change purse; compact; jewelry box; perfume bottle; pin box; etc.

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Tokens is the definitive reference book on both photo-jewelry and the business operations of many well-known, mid-nineteenth century photograph galleries who sold photo-jewelry: from Mathew Brady and Jeremiah Gurney, to Southworth & Hawes and Whipple & Black. Tokens contains many unpublished photographs of these photographers, in the gallery, in the field, or with their families.

Brady Gallery photographic team for the Civil War, at Berlin, MD, 1862, including ( left to right ): Holmes, Stephen (cook), Whitney, Hodges, Mathew Brady, and Woodbury, Albumen

Some of the other enjoyable subjects in Tokens include folk art and hair jewelry. Here are two example illustrations from the book

Tinted pin of lady with bottle curls, gold chain & hair bracelets. Pinchbeck twisted wire border, grape leaves. English, daguerreotype, c. 1853

Rare pin, man's portrait, woven hair mount. four leaf edge. Daguerreotype, c. 1850

It was published by West Companies, Inc. Requests for information should be emailed to: PhotographicJewelry@Yahoo.com

P.S. Just in case you decided not to order a copy, we at least wanted to bring a smile to your face by showing you a photo-jewelry daguerreotype pin with the most beautiful woman we have ever seen in a 19th century photograph; here she is:

Pin, tinted portrait of a most beautiful woman, tie string blouse, gold earrings, sculptured mounting, daguerreotype, c. 1848

To: Librarians and Archivists: The correct ISBN number for Tokens is 0-9777107-7-7

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Tokens of Affections Select Book Reviews:

The Magazine Antiques

Maine Antique Digest

The New York Times

The Daguerreian Society Journal

Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britian

The American Society of Jewelry Historians

Photography Museum.com