Finding aid for the Cruces y Campa Mexican carte-de-visite album, 1863-1866

Beth Ann Guynn


Descriptive Summary

Title: Cruces y Campa Mexican carte-de-visite album
Date (inclusive): 1863-1866
Number: 2022.R.8
Creator/Collector: Cruces y Campa (Firm)
Physical Description: 1 Linear Feet (46 cartes-de-visite in 1 album)
Repository:
The Getty Research Institute
Special Collections
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles 90049-1688
Business Number: (310) 440-7390
Fax Number: (310) 440-7780
reference@getty.edu
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10020/askref
(310) 440-7390
Abstract: The album contains 46 carte-de-visite photographs, most of which were taken by the Mexican photography studio of Cruces y Campa between 1863 and 1866 during the period known as the French Intervention when France occupied Mexico. The photographs are mostly Mexican occupational portraits, organized first by men and then women. Depicted are police officers, musicians, street vendors, and domestic workers. Also included are a portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo man and woman and five portraits of Mexican Kickapoo men.
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Language: Collection material is in French .

Biographical / Historical

The Mexico City photography studio, Cruces y Campa, was founded in 1862 by Antíoco Cruces and Luis Campa, an engraving professor at the Academia de San Carlos, where both men had studied. The studio was first located at Calle de San Francisco nr. 4 and later moved to Calle del Empedradillo nr. 4 next to the Metropolitan Cathedral. Cruces y Campa published their pointedly titled book of portraits of Mexican political figures, Galería de personas que han ejercido el mando supremo de México, con título legal o por medio de la usurpación , in 1874. In addition to photographing prominent members of society, the Liberal party, and the court of Maximillian, they also made occupational portraits and photographs of Mexican tipos or types. Their "Tipos populares mexicanos" series won a bronze medal at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial International Exhibition. The following year Cruces took over the firm, renaming it Cruces y Cie, and sometime later Campa opened a new studio called Campa y Compañia.
Sources Consulted:
Milwaukee Public Museum. "History of the Mexican Kickapoo." https://www.mpm.edu/research-collections/anthropology/online-collections-research/mexican-kickapoo/history
Sezer, Adnan and Bruno Tartarin. "Album mexicain circa 1860." https://photo-discovery.com/wp-content/uploads/Mexique-cdv.pdf

Administrative Information

Publication Rights

Preferred Citation

Cruces y Campa Mexican carte-de-visite album, 1863-1866, The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Accession no. 2022.R.8.
http://hdl.handle.net/10020/cifa2022r8

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Acquired in 2022.

Processing Information

The collection was processed, and the finding aid written, by Beth Ann Guynn in 2022.

Digitized Material

The collection was digitized by the repository in 2022 and the images are available online:
http://hdl.handle.net/10020/2022r8

Scope and Content of Collection

The album contains 46 albumen cartes-de-visite, most of which were made by the Mexican studio of Cruces y Campa between 1863 and 1866 during the period known as the French Intervention when France occupied Mexico. It opens with a portrait of Amand-Durand of Le Guillois (Anathol-Charles-Lucien Leguillois), the founder of the French satirical journal Le Hanneton, journal des toqués, a copy of which he holds in his hand. On the same page a carte-de-visite reproduces Le Guillois's campaign flier for his candidacy for the Second Empire legislative elections of 1863. The presence of these two photographs at the start of the album provides strong evidence that the album was originally owned by Le Guillois. As Le Guillois himself was never in Mexico it is likely that the album or at least the cartes-de-viste were presented to him by someone who obtained them in Mexico.
The photographs are mostly Mexican occupational portraits, organized first by men and then women. Depicted are police officers, musicians, a variety of street vendors, and domestic workers. While a few male portraits depicting Mexican indigenous men are captioned simply as "indien," two women are more specifically identified as indigenous women from Cholula.
Following the portraits of women are a portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo man and woman and five portraits of Mexican Kickapoo men. Two portraits are captioned with the made-up tribe name "Makois." One man wearing a bearskin and otter tooth necklace and cap and holding a club is depicted in both full- and-half-length portraits. During the nineteenth century, the Kickapoo, who originally lived in the "Algonquian heartland," the area bounded by the Great Lakes and the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, were increasingly pushed to lands further south and west of their traditional territory as American settlers advanced across the continent. Some Kickapoo entered Mexico as early as 1839, and by 1866 the Mexican government had granted the land known as El Nacimiento de los Kikapúes, near Múzquiz, Coahuila to them.
The final portraits in the album are of José Rafael Carrera y Turcios, president of Guatemala from 1844 to 1848 and then again from 1851 to 1865, and a Manuel Penedo portrait of a man identified as de Molina. The final carte-de-visite in the album is a montage of postage stamps by a photographer from St. Germain signing his work as Saint Thomas d'Aquin.
The album has heavily embossed brown leather covers with two brass clasps, also heavily embossed, and lacking their latches. French captions are penciled on the mounts below most of the cartes-de-visite. The titles of the individual cartes-de-visite are from these nineteenth-century annotations, some of include terms which are now considered to be racist, biased, pejorative, or offensive.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in a single series: Series I. Cruces y Campa Mexican carte-de-visite album, 1863-1866.

Indexing Terms

Subjects - Names

Carrera, Rafael, 1814-1865
Le Guillois, Anatole

Subjects - Topics

Kickapoo Indians -- Mexico -- Portraits
Occupations -- Mexico
Street vendors -- Mexico

Subjects - Places

Mexico -- Description and travel

Genres and Forms of Material

Albumen prints -- Mexico -- 19th century
Cartes-de-visite -- Mexico -- 19th century
Group portraits -- Mexico -- 19th century
Photograph albums -- Mexico -- 19th century
Studio portraits -- Mexico -- 19th century
Photographs, Original

Contributors

Cruces y Campa (Firm)
Penedo, Manuel


 

Series I. Cruces y Campa Mexican carte-de-visite album, 1863-1866

Arrangement

In original order.
Box 1, Item Front cover

2022.R.8-fc Front cover

Box 1, page Front endpapers

2022.R.8-fe Front end papers

Box 1, page Free front endpaper verso

2022.R.8-fev Verso of free front endpaper

Box 1, page 1 recto-1

2022.R.8-1r.1 Amand-Durand, [Le Guillois Holding a Copy of Le Hanneton: journal des toqués ]

Scope and Content Note

Imprint on mount below image: Amand Durand phot.
Box 1, page 1 recto-2

2022.R.8-1r.2 Photographer unidentified, Candidature de M. Le Guillois

Box 1, page 1 verso-1

2022.R.8-1v.1 Cruces y Campa, Sergent de ville mexicain armé de son bâton

Box 1, page 1 verso-2

2022.R.8-1v.2 Cruces y Campa, Garde de jour

Box 1, page 2 recto-1

2022.R.8-2r.1 Cruces y Campa, Officier de sergents de ville

Box 1, page 2 recto-2

2022.R.8-2r.2 Cruces y Campa, Musiciens militaires mexicains

Box 1, page 2 verso-1

2022.R.8-2v.1 Cruces y Campa, Cavaliers mexicains

Scope and Content Note

Portrait of two charros.
Box 1, page 2 verso-2

2022.R.8-2v.2 Cruces y Campa, Commissionnaire

Scope and Content Note

Portrait of a cargo porter for the military.
Box 1, page 3 recto-1

2022.R.8-3r.1 Cruces y Campa, Guide de chariots de mules

Box 1, page 3 recto-2

2022.R.8-3r.2 Cruces y Campa, Mexicain

Scope and Content Note

Depicts a young man on a burro carrying a large sack on its back.
Box 1, page 3 verso-1

2022.R.8-3v.1 Cruces y Campa, Petit Indien

Box 1, page 3 verso-2

2022.R.8-3v.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de fleurs de St. Jean (Juin)

Box 1, page 4 recto-1

2022.R.8-4r.1 Cruces y Campa, Indien marchand de charbons

Box 1, page 4 recto-2

2022.R.8-4r.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de balais

Box 1, page 4 verso-1

2022.R.8-4v.1 Cruces y Campa, Domestique indien

Box 1, page 4 verso-2

2022.R.8-4v.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de pains

Box 1, page 5 recto-1

2022.R.8-5r.1 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de paniers

Box 1, page 5 recto-2

2022.R.8-5r.2 Cruces y Campa, M'd. de poteries (Marchand de poteries)

Box 1, page 5 verso-1

2022.R.8-5v.1 Cruces y Campa, [Guitar Seller]

Box 1, page 5 verso-2

2022.R.8-5v.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de café

Box 1, page 6 recto-1

2022.R.8-6r.1 Cruces y Campa, Mercier ambulant

Box 1, page 6 recto-2

2022.R.8-6r.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de graisse

Box 1, page 6 verso-1

2022.R.8-6v.1 Cruces y Campa, Indiens tricoteurs

Box 1, page 6 verso-2

2022.R.8-6v.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de chandelles

Box 1, page 7 recto-1

2022.R.8-7r.1 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de crécelles (vendredi et samedie saints)

Box 1, page 7 recto-2

2022.R.8-7r.2 Cruces y Campa, Marchands de tamis en crin

Box 1, page 7 verso-1

2022.R.8-7v.1 Cruces y Campa, Cavalier mexicain

Box 1, page 7 verso-2

2022.R.8-7v.2 Cruces y Campa, Bateliers mexicains

Box 1, page 8 recto-1

2022.R.8-8r.1 Cruces y Campa, Musiciens mexicains

Box 1, page 8 recto-2

2022.R.8-8r.2 Cruces y Campa, Mexicains mangeant la tortilla

Box 1, page 8 verso-1

2022.R.8-8v.1 Cruces y Campa, Marchand de confitures

Box 1, page 8 verso-2

2022.R.8-8v.2 Cruces y Campa, Femme des mines lavant les pépites

Box 1, page 9 recto-1

2022.R.8-9r.1 Cruces y Campa, Indienne vendant des fleurs

Box 1, page 9 recto-2

2022.R.8-9r.2 Cruces y Campa, Repasseuse mexicaine

Box 1, page 9 verso-1

2022.R.8-9v.1 Cruces y Campa, Indienne du côté de Colukoa

Scope and Content Note

This reference to the area around Cholula, Mexico is not entirely clear.
Box 1, page 9 verso-2

2022.R.8-9v.2 Cruces y Campa, Servante indienne du côté de Colukoa

Scope and Content Note

The woman is in traditional Yucatecan attire, and as such does not hail from Cholula.
Box 1, page 10 recto-1

2022.R.8-10r.1 Cruces y Campa, [Woman Dressed in the China Poblana Style]

Scope and Content Note

Woman wearing the traditional attire of Central Mexico.
Box 1, page 10 recto-2

2022.R.8-10r.2 Cruces y Campa, Sauvages

Scope and Content Note

Full-length portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo couple.
Box 1, page 10 verso-1

2022.R.8-10v.1 Cruces y Campa, Sauvage de la tribu des Makois

Scope and Content Note

Full-length portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo man. Makois is an invented tribal name.
Box 1, page 10 verso-2

2022.R.8-10v.2 Cruces y Campa, Sauvage de la tribu des Makois

Scope and Content Note

Portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo man seated on blocks or steps that have been retouched to resemble a rock. The man wears a bearskin and otter tooth necklace and cap and holds a club. See 2022.R.8-11v.1 for his bust portrait.
Box 1, page 11 recto-1

2022.R.8-11r.1 Cruces y Campa, Sauvage prisonnier

Scope and Content Note

Bust portrait of a Kickapoo man.
Box 1, page 11 recto-2

2022.R.8-11r.2 Cruces y Campa, Sauvage

Scope and Content Note

Bust portrait of a bare-chested Kickapoo man wearing many strands of beads.
Box 1, page 11 verso-1

2022.R.8-11v.1 Cruces y Campa, Sauvage prisonnier à Mexico

Scope and Content Note

Bust portrait of a Mexican Kickapoo man. For his seated portrait see 2022.R.8-10v.2.
Box 1, page 11 verso-2

2022.R.8-11v.2 Photographer unidentified, Carrera

Scope and Content Note

Portrait of José Rafael Carrera y Turcios, president of Guatemala.
Box 1, page 12 recto-1

2022.R.8-12r.1 Saint Thomas d'Aquin, [Montage of Postal Stamps]

Box 1, page 12 recto-2

2022.R.8-12r.2 Penedo, Manuel, De Molina

Scope and Content Note

Title from annotation on verso of carte-de-visite.
Box 1, page 12 verso-1

2022.R.8-12v.1 [Verso of Saint Thomas d'Aquin carte-de-visite]

Scope and Content Note

Photographer's imprint on verso: Photographie / Saint Thomas d'Aquin / 44. rue St. Dominique / St. Germain / au Rez-de-Chaussée / Photographie microscopique / Brevetée a.g.d.g. / Imp. Gastée Paris.
Box 1, page 12 verso-2

2022.R.8-12v.2 [Verso of Penedo carte-de-visite]

Scope and Content Note

Photographer's wet stamp on verso: Manuel Penedo. Annotation on verso: De Molina / mari d'Eléonore décédé.
Box 1, page 13 recto

2022.R.8-13r Blank page

Box 1, page Back endpapers

2022.R.8-be Back endpapers