Lovely Mourner, Handtinted 1/9th-Plate Ambrotype, Circa 1858
Here is a lovely example of a monotone ensemble that appears black actually being, without doubt, black. If her clothes were not black, the hand-colorist would have surely let us know.
When we look at various types of 19th century photos, there is no reason to believe that what looks like mourning black is actually bright yellow or orange or some other color, just because some photographic processes could make these colors look black. We need to keep in mind that just because it is possible, it is not probable when other contextual clues tell us that garb is indeed black.
Lovely Mourner, Handtinted 1/9th-Plate Ambrotype, Circa 1858
Here is a lovely example of a monotone ensemble that appears black actually being, without doubt, black. If her clothes were not black, the hand-colorist would have surely let us know.
When we look at various types of 19th century photos, there is no reason to believe that what looks like mourning black is actually bright yellow or orange or some other color, just because some photographic processes could make these colors look black. We need to keep in mind that just because it is possible, it is not probable when other contextual clues tell us that garb is indeed black.