TO ALL those critics who think Nicolas Cage's acting has been getting stale - cut the man some slack, he's more than 100 years old. And a vampire.

An antiques dealer has put a Civil War photo on eBay that he claims is proof that Cage isn't 47 but an immortal bloodsucker.

The picture, which dates from 1870 and carries a $US1 million price tag, bears an uncanny resemblance to the star.

Here's what the product description says:

"Original c1870 carte de visite showing a man who looks exactly like Nick Cage. Personally, I believe it's him and that he is some sort of walking undead / vampire, et cetera, who quickens / reinvents himself once every 75 years or so. 150 years from now, he might be a politician, the leader of a cult, or a talk show host.

"This is not a trick photo, it's an original photograph of a man who lived in Bristol, TN sometime around the Civil War. Photographer is Professor G.B. Smith. A contact of mine forwarded this interesting article about the photographer, Smith. Turns out he was a confederate Civil War prisoner of war photographer.

"Guaranteed to be an original 1860s-70s photograph and not a modern reproduction, copy or photo manipulation."

Cage is no stranger to vampires. In the 80s cult movie Vampire's Kiss he plays a yuppie literary agent who thinks he is a vampire.

Originally published as You suck, Nicolas Cage - and here's why