LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2006 Dec Signature Civil War Auction #642  / 

25403

Confederate Brothers 1/6th Plate Ambrotypes

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:1,000.00 USD Estimated At:4,000.00 - 7,000.00 USD
Confederate Brothers 1/6th Plate Ambrotypes
<B>Two Magnificent Confederate 1/6th Plate Ambrotypes of Alabama Brothers Housed Together In Scarce Double Union Case.</B></I> In a successful effort to save his image from becoming anonymous through time, the sitter on the left had the foresight to scratch his name - M. Shuttleworth - into the field of his portrait. Professional research reveals him to be Morgan Shuttleworth, Co. "H", 36th Alabama Infantry. The fellow in the second image, although not identified, is certainly Shuttleworth's brother given their shared features. In fact, it is plausible that the second image is that of an identical twin! Under close inspection they appear to be the same person if their differing beard styles are ignored. 1850 Census records show Morgan Shuttleworth to have been one of eight children in the Bibb County, Alabama household of John and Molly Shuttleworth. Further investigation should reveal the identity of his look-alike brother-in-arms. The 36th Alabama, formed in Mt. Vernon, Alabama in May, 1862, spent nearly a year in the vicinity of Mobile before heading north to join the Army of Tennessee outside of Atlanta. Shuttleworth's Service Record indicates that, as a recently exchanged POW, he was hospitalized in May, 1864 for what was likely an unhealed gunshot wound to the chest and shoulder. The circumstances and timing of Shuttleworth's ailment should suggest he was shot during the Battle of Resaca in Georgia. He died the following month. The brothers are wearing matching militia shell jackets tailored in dark cloth with tinted red piping and three rows of buttons. The buttons on Morgan Shuttleworth's jacket are not painted and have visible eagles on the face. It is highly likely that these are AVC (Alabama Volunteer Corps) buttons as opposed to common Federal types. Both men have light military trousers with one pair sporting a tinted red stripe. Good old Southern slouch hats top off these defenders of Dixie. Morgan's as-yet unidentified brother is double-armed with a menacing D-guard bowie knife and a pocket revolver. The photographs are behind period brass matts inserted into an unconventional gutta percha case made for holding two images in tandem. The case's lid is impressed with a sentimental scene showing a mother, her child, and the family dog (Krainik 89). An altogether remarkable pair of images in excellent condition.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Small Collectibles (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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