Robert Cornelius and Early Pioneering Daguerreotypists Database Project

FAIN: PR-253387-17

CCAHA (Philadelphia, PA 19103-5530)
Rachel Wetzel (Project Director: June 2016 to September 2021)

The development of a database to gather information about early ungilded daguerreotypes created by an American pioneer of photography, Robert Cornelius (1809-93), and other early daguerreotypists, and to assist in the development of future conservation treatment practices.

Led by Rachel Wetzel, Photograph Conservator at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, a team of experts in the field of photograph conservation will design a database for information regarding early ungilded daguerreotypes (1839-1841), by Robert Cornelius and other early pioneering daguerreotypists, to assist curators and conservators with responsibilities for the care and preservation of these important and fragile artifacts. Ms. Wetzel will collect information on the known existing Cornelius daguerreotypes, as well as other early ungilded daguerreotypes from this period. The database will be located and disseminated through the Lens Media Lab website maintained by Paul Messier at the Yale Institute for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage. The establishment of this database is an essential step in developing appropriate best practices and treatment protocols for these irreplaceable documents of the earliest years of photography.

Associated Products

Robert Cornelius Daguerreotype Database (Database/Archive/Digital Edition)
Title: Robert Cornelius Daguerreotype Database
Author: Rachel Wetzel
Abstract: The attached PDF on the Supplementary Products page was converted from an Excel file version of the Access database draft, which includes all examination information for 52 daguerreotypes identified during the Robert Cornelius Daguerreotype Project. Information on the first object is still incomplete. The remaining 51 objects in the database are entered in their entirety, although all the information does not appear to have been retained in the conversion process. Links to photography are not active. As described in the report, the Library of Congress anticipates publishing the complete Access database, including active photography links, as a downloadable zip file in June 2020. The Lens Media Lab at the Yale Institute for the Preservation of Cultural Material anticipates providing a secondary link to all the information following initial publication by the Library of Congress.
Year: 2019
Access Model: Upon publication by LOC in 2020, it is anticipated the database will be open access, with some privacy restrictions applied to targeted images at the request of private owners.

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