carte-de-visite after a daguerreotype, 1847, probably printed in the 1870s (cf. Deas, pl. 12)

This carte-de-visite is in generally very good condition. The deep brown tones and creamy highlights of this albumen print have faded overtime, although the fine details of the image remain strong. In raking light, faint silvering is visible in the dark areas. Visible upon close examination are two linear scratches (1¾- and 3¾-inches) extending from the lower mount edge; neither appears to break the emulsion. On the reverse, '6-' is written in pencil. There is light soiling from handling on the front and reverse of the mount. Along the upper mount edge, there is a small crease and fold.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The carte-de-visite of Poe offered here shows the now-lost 'Daly' daguerreotype of the author, made by an unidentified New York photographer in June of 1847.  At the time of this writing, only two other examples of this rare carte-de-visite have been located, both in inst🃏itutional collections: at the Fogg Museum at Harvard University, a꧋nd at the Maryland Historical Society.

According to Poe portrait authority Michael Deas, to whom this essay is indebted, the 'Daly' daguerreotype was made at the request of the young Mary Elizabeth Bronson, who accompanied her clergyman father on a visit to the author after Mrs. Poe's death.  At the time, Poe was living north of Manhattan in reduced circumstances, at a small cottage in Fordham, the Bronx.  Despite this, Mary Elizabeth encountered, in her own words, '"a very handsome and elegant appearing gentleman, who welcomed us with a quiet, cordial, and graceful politeness that ill accorded with my imaginary sombre poet'"(quoted in Deas, The Portraits and Daguerreotypes of Edgar Allan Poe, Charlottesville, 1988, p. 34).   Further research by Deas, subsequent to the publication of his volume on Poe portraits, has established that what is now known as the 'Daly' daguerreotype is, indeed, the dag♏uerreotype likeness requested of Poe by Mary Elizabeth Bronson, for her planned collection of portraits of authors (see //www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1921/deas106a.htm).    

The daguerreotype remained in Mary Bronson's collection at least until 1888, the last year it was documented as in her possession. Iꦦn the intervening years, she married William Gates LeDuc and moved to the Minnesota Territory; the Minnesota Historical Society now owns a 1850s salted paper copy print of the daguerreotype, as well as an enlarged cyanotype 🅰copy, both from her collection. 

The plate's next recognized whereabouts was in the1900 auction of the estate of Augustin Daly, from whom this daguerreotype most often gets its name.  Daly, an influential American theatre manager and playwright from Virginia, had amassed a large collection of art, books, and theatre-related memorabilia.  The New York Times, reporting at length on the auction held at the galleries of the American Art Association, remarked, 'The large room in which sales are held was crowded to suffocation.  Indeed, a short time after the first lot was put under the hammer it was almost impossible to gain entrance" (New York Times, 21 March 1900).  Lot 5015, described as 'Poe, Edgar Allan. With letter authenticating,' was purchased by Peter Gilsey, eldest son of the founder of Manhattan's Gilsey House Hotel, a favorite stomping ground for the literati and theatre trade.  Gilsey, a patron of the theatre and arts through his support for the Metropolitaꩵn Museum of Art and membership in the Players Club, died unexpectedly the following year.  The contents of his estate, including 'Art, Literature, History, and The Drama,' were sold in an equally publicized auction in 1903 by John Anderson, Jr., auctioneer of literary property.  The daguerreotype was purchased in that auction for $110 by an𝔍onymous absentee bid, and the current location of the plate has ever since remained unknown.