..Precious glass negatives provide intimate glimpse into the life of an Edwardian family

Daily Mail ^ | October 29,2009 | By Staff

[C19fan]

Paddling in the sea while smoking a pipe, dressed in a waistcoat, stiffly starched shirt and perky straw boater; out on a fishing trip with the family and gathering for an outdoor amateur production of Twelfth Night in an age before large screen TVs and games consoles. These beautiful pictures provide an intimate spyglass into the life and leisure time of an Edwardian family - and a valuable glimpse of a bygone era.

[C19fan]

The little girls look so cute. Makes me wish I had a Tardis.

[RushIsMyTeddyBear]

There was a great pub in Yorkshire that had one of these on their wall. Neat stuff.

[Mercat]

I have some wonderful photos taken with a Brownie camera during this same era at a resort in SW Oklahoma, Turner Falls by my great aunt and her friends. Aunt Maud was born in the 1870s in Texas and lived most of her life in Purcell, Indian Territory.

[La Lydia]

My Tardis is in the shop having its randomizer rebuilt. It keeps landing me in the middle of the Obama administration.

[KarlInOhio]

and little Lois is happily perched among some pot plants

I just love the way the British try to speak English. ;-).

[DannyTN]

Surprised to see “Xmas” in there. I didn’t think that started till the 60’s.

[DJ MacWoW]

I love old pictures too. This is my Grandmother with her Grandfather on the 4th of July 1916. He was a Civil War veteran. Grandmother is wearing her school graduation dress that her mother made.

[cydcharisse]

The word "Christ" and its compounds, including "Christmas", have been abbreviated for at least the past 1,000 years, long before the modern "Xmas" was commonly used. "Christ" was often written as "XP" or "Xt"; there are references in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as far back as 1021 AD. This X and P arose as the uppercase forms of the Greek letters χ and ρ), used in ancient abbreviations for Χριστος (Greek for "Christ"), and are still widely seen in many Eastern Orthodox icons depicting Jesus Christ. The labarum, an amalgamation of the two Greek letters rendered as ☧, is a symbol often used to represent Christ in Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christian Churches.

[ExGeeEye]

I have a flag with that star pattern, about 7x0 inches, possibly of silk. I found it folded into quarters inside an old “Family” Bible in an antique bookstore whan I was about 12. I framed it, and when I was 15 started marking off the days of the Tehran Hostage situation .

Memry is a wonderful thing...

[ExGeeEye]

oops 7x9

[GeronL]

People dressed better and spoke better before TV

[DJ MacWoW]

I never even noticed the pattern on those flags. LOL I was focused on GGrandpa holding a gun, in public, that he fired off every 4th of July. :-)

[DJ MacWoW]

* That would be GGGrandpa.sigh*

[Upstate NY Guy]

"Motor Cycling and a spot of tea! What say old chap?"

I love the English!

[I Buried My Guns]

I love the English of old; stiff upper lip and all that.

The modern english? Not so much.

[Since 2009-07-21]

These are beautiful pictures. What strikes me is their feeling of spontaneity or candidness, given these are from glass plate negatives, an inherently slower process of picture-taking than the smaller format cameras. Funny though, the 20th century was the century of the small format camera, and yet it took a while for people to “think” small format. Hence, you have countless snapshots, an ocean of them, in which people pose lifelessly, rigidly in front of the camera just as they did by necessity in front of view cameras a century before.

[Since 2009-07-21]

What a great picture, and given the way things are today it is an awfully poignant picture too!

[C19fan]

What is pathetic a lot of people looking at Victorian/Edwardian photos think these people were dour because of the facial expression but as you point out you had to make a comfortable facial expression you could hold or else the photo was ruined.

[C19fan]

I wish I could dress up by girls like those in the photos. Hard enough to keep Bratz girls inspired clothing off them.

[Since 2009-07-21]

you had to make a comfortable facial expression you could hold or else the photo was ruined

True! Not to mention having to position your head against one of those metal head rests, as was done with some early studio portraiture!