Unusual (and Very Painterly) Hybrid: 19th Century Albumen Cabinet Card Photo of Dog with Painted Backdrop vignettes with ink as strong as

with ink as strong as if written yesterday and paper in good condition

presumably the year of its making

were used to store ingredients needed for betel chewing-- once a common practice in southeast Asia

6 1/4" x 4" x 3/4"

but it is in overall very good vintage condition

Unusual (and Very Painterly) Hybrid: 19th Century Albumen Cabinet Card Photo of Dog with Painted Backdrop vignettes with ink as strong asAt first I took this for a photograph of a painting of a dog, but I believe in fact the portrait of the dog, and the carpet it lies on, is photographic; it is just the background that was painted. And with some blurring of the lines along the back of the dog where photo and illusion meet, yielding a very atmospheric and painterly portrait of a clearly much beloved pet. With Howard & Co.'s Plattsburgh, NY printed on the back of the cabinet card all of