67
●
(POP PHOTOGRAPHICA—
SPANISH AMERICAN WAR)
Silk pouch with ribboned corners enhanced with
brass anchors and inset with a commemorative
photograph of the U.S.S. Maine; when open
reveals a brightly colored flag, a poem, brass
ornamentation, and two slots for additional
photographs.With two paperweights featuring
photographic portraits of John Dewey, who was
Admiral of the Navy during the Spanish-
AmericanWar, sepia-toned silver prints, 2 inches
(5.1 cm.) in diameter and 3
1
/
4
x1
3
/
4
inches
(8.3x4.4 cm.); inset in thick glass. 1898
[300/450]
From the Collection of John Silverstein.
The battleship Maine was blown up in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898; all told 252 seamen perished in
the blast. An American board’s finding that the vessel had sunk due to a landmine unleashed a wave of public
outrage and fueled calls for war. Although the sinking of the ship was not the cause of the Spanish-American
War, shouts of “Remember the Maine!” accelerated the diplomatic impasse over Cuba. On April 11, McKinley
asked Congress for permission to intervene in Cuba and ten days later ordered a naval blockade of the island.
68
●
(POP PHOTOGRAPHICA)
Pair of freestanding celluloid photographs, the first depicting a World War I soldier, who is posing
against a patriotic backdrop, and the second a couple posing outdoors; each is hand-colored. Plus a
small, oval celluloid mirror depicting an elderly couple, and with 5 salesman’s sample sheets
containing 16 different styles of backdrops. Circa 1918
[500/750]
WITH
—
Group of 7 paperweights, comprising 6 with photographs that are either albumen, printing-out
paper or silver prints; 4 with a special cut-glass star motif that is reverse painted (3 of these with
photographs), one is spherical (and the image is on milkglass), one is rectangular, and the last is
freestanding. 1880s-1920s.
From the Collection of John Silverstein.
67
67
Lot 68
