Description Christopher "Kit" Carson: Sixth Plate Daguerreotype. Half-length studio portrait of Christopher "Kit" Carson (1809-1868), noted frontiersman, trapper, guide and Indian agent. This exceptionally clear image is thought to have been taken in San Francisco in the 1845-1848 period. This corresponds with the vintage of the dag and the age of the sitter. The photograph is housed in an embossed paper case with burgundy velvet pad. It has been resealed. It may well be the earliest known portrait of Carson. There is no documentation that accompanies the piece; however, it was examined by two plastic surgeons who provided letters verifying the attribution. In one, Dr. Tourtlotte, after examining the study image and an exemplar, states: "... it is of a high degree of probability that both images are indeed of the same person... This conclusion is based on 25 years experience as a medical doctor and anti-aging facial aesthetics specialist." In the other letter, Dr. Enevoldsen states: "... I have carefully studied all of the facial features and have made measurements and calculated proportions based on key anatomical landmarks. These have been meticulously compared to several images of Kit Carson on the Internet. It is my opinion, based on over 25 years of experience as a plastic surgeon performing facial aesthetic and reconstructive surgical procedures, that to an extremely high degree of medical certainty the individual in [the daguerreotype] is, in fact, Kit Carson." The image was also carefully examined by three "photo guys" and on-staff historical specialists who, independently, unanimously agreed the sitter is Carson.





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