Sixth plate tintype of a soldier wearing a ferrotype and ribbon that depicts a large bell, ostensibly in support of the candidate Senator John Bell of Tennessee. Senator Bell ran for President in the 1860 election with running mate Edward Everett and often used bell imagery in his campaign material.



After Senator Bell's failed bid, he advocated for secession in his home state of Tennessee. It's unclear if the soldier was southern and wearing Bell's ribbon to express solidarity with him once secession began, or if he was a soldier before the war and was a supporter of Bell's candidacy. Regardless, an incredibly rare ribbon to see in a period image.



Image is housed in a nice thermoplastic case.



[Civil War, Daguerreotype, Ambrotype, Tintype, CDV, Union, Confederate, Abraham Lincoln, Political Memorabilia]