Portret van een onbekende man met snor 1861 - 1874

Albert Greiner made this photograph of an unknown mustachioed man using albumen silver print in Amsterdam. Carte-de-visite portraits like this one were extremely popular in the mid-19th century, and they offer us a fascinating glimpse into the social conventions of the time. The man’s formal attire and carefully groomed appearance speak to the values of respectability and social standing in the Netherlands. This photograph’s function was to communicate the sitter’s status to his peers, but was also a product of the rise of commercial photography. Studios like Greiner’s democratized portraiture. While only the wealthy could previously afford to commission painted portraits, now members of the middle class could participate in this form of self-representation. To understand the full story of this portrait, we can consult city directories to learn more about the studio’s clientele, and photographic journals to understand the aesthetic values of the time. The meaning of this small photograph lies not just in the image itself, but in its role within a changing society.