Tintype Portrait of Two Sailors
This is a tintype portrait of two sailors in uniform. I think that style of uniform, with flap-front trousers and mortar-board type hats, was English, but those features may have been used in other countries as well. And being sailors, they could be in port almost anywhere in the world when the picture was taken. As with so many tintypes, there is almost no clue as to the photographer or location. The only possibility I see, is that someone might recognize the distinctive pillar and bench (or low wall?) the seated fellow is perched on, or the background, which is only visible at the edges because the photographer chose to hang a plain backdrop directly behind the subjects. If either of those appear in card-mounted photos with a photographer’s imprint, we might discover the location. The identities are even more elusive. An expert in uniforms might be able to tell what country they come from, and a rough time-span, but recognizing the sailors would require a descendant identifying them from other family photos. A very ‘long-shot’ — but it could happen.
