Early daguerreotype portraitists often took their cues from paintings, showing sitters with carefully chosen clothing and props meant to communicate something about themselves, whether profession, social standing, or economic wealth. This man, possibly Joseph Plympton, is dressed in his military uniform and photographed as if in the midst of administrative work, signaling that he’s an officer, not a mere foot soldier.

This daguerreotype has been handcolored with gold leaf on a few key details—the sword’s hilt, the uniform’s buttons, and the hat’s emblem—that emphasize the finery of his military dress and echo the color of the brass case. More attention has been paid to them than to the young man who holds the officer’s belongings and stands a few feet behind him, out of the camera’s focal range. Is he a military attendant? A servant? An enslaved person? We are left to wonder what he might say about this image.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023).