Day

Ornamental Mirror Co., New York
1871
Currently on view
MediumPhotogravure, mirror, ebonized wood
Dimensions22 3/8 × 22 3/8 × 1 3/8 inches (framed)
CreditGift of Jan and Warren Adelson, 2001
Accession Number2001.01.01

In the nineteenth century, photographers patented many decorative processes whose names are now forgotten. At the Centennial Exhibition, the Ornamental Mirror Company displayed “photo-relievos” and photographs on mirrors. When Glenview was built, these sculptures would have been instantly recognizable to many Americans as famous reliefs by Danish artist Bertel Thorwaldsen. Much reproduced as plaster casts and prints, they are featured on Thorwaldsen’s self-portrait statue in Central Park.