African American Civil War Soldier Tintype

Tintype of a Civil War soldier
CREATED BY
Unidentified
SUBJECT OF
Unidentified Man or Men
DATE
1861 - 1865
MEDIUM
silver on iron photographic plates
DIMENSIONS
H x W (Case closed): 3 7/8 × 3 9/16 × 7/8 in. (9.8 × 9 × 2.2 cm)
H x W (Case open): 3 13/16 x 7 x 7/16 in. (9.7 x 17.8 x 1.1 cm)
DESCRIPTION
In black thermoplastic case with brass hinges and red velvet liner; Preserver and mat: brass decorated with eagle, 2 American flags, cannon, and E Pluribus Unum set in a red velvet liner; tintype with cover glass of an African American Union soldier with a moustache and beard, holding a pistol across his chest. His buttons and belt buckle are hand-colored in gold paint. The hand-coloring on the buckle reads backwards "SU," which when considered that the image is reversed, reads "US," the traditional inscription on Union Civil War belt buckles.
COLLECTION TITLE
Liljenquist Family Collection