A Bonnie Haddie [Newhaven, Scotland, Fish Wives CDV]

Edinburgh: Ross & Pringle, 1870. Ephemera. Very good. A commercial studio portrait of two Newhaven fish wives, the women who gutted and prepared fish and hauled the results to market in the village of Newhaven, just north of Edinburgh. The fish women were popular subjects for painters and photographers because of their distinctive vertically striped dresses.

This image shows one woman offering a platter of fish to another woman, who is holding a fish in both hands, closely inspecting one of them. A basket of fish is on the ground between them.

The photographers Ross & Pringle operated as a partnership from 1867 to 1875 at the 114 George Street address printed on the back (verso) of the mount (per the Edinphoto website).

Occupational carte de visite photograph; image, 2-3/16 by 3-11/16 inches. Thin card mount, 2-7/16 by 4-3/16 inches, with photographer's mark on the back. Caption stamped below image on front (recto) of mount. A very good image with a bit of spotting in the print. Good contrast and tonal range. Minor soiling to the front of the mount with a very thin surface scar along the top edge.