A rare one, second half 1860s I believe, by the Kilburn Brothers of Littleton, NH. Lots of American identity and mythology wrapped up in this image of two "Mayflower relics": Gov. Carver's Chair (said to have made the journey with him, the possibility of which has since been proven pretty much impossible); and Miles Standish's sword, photographed here at Pilgrim Hall, I believe, where they continue to be held. (Carver was credited with writing the Mayflower Compact and became the governor of Plymouth Colony; Standish was military adviser for Plymouth Colony and played a leading role in its administration and defense--both arriving on the Mayflower.)
I find our collective attachment to "relics" fascinating in general, and the manner in which they are "framed" even more so--whether relics of saints encased in ornate gold and silver cases or shrines, evoking the divine and miraculous, or here the stark, "objective" presentation of these utilitarian objects (and stoic manner of the photographs themselves)--in perfect keeping with America's founding narrative. (The double image here also makes me think a bit of Warhol's electric chairs, too.)
6 3/4" x 3 1/4" in pristine condition.
