Antique Sideshow CDV Tom Thumb Commodore Nutt C.D. Fredricks NY Ex-Diesso For Sale

print displays typical mild fading and minor edge wear to the mount. The reverse exhibits some noticeable fading and localized staining, though the studio imprint remains legible. Please review all photos for exact condition. 
Item Specifics:
Type: Photograph
Format: Carte de Visite (CDV)
Subject: Sideshow Performers / General Tom Thumb, Commodore Nutt, Minnie/Lavinia Warren
Year of Production: ca. 1860s
Photographer: C.D. Fredricks & Co. (New York, Havana, Paris)
Original/Reprint: Original Print
Theme: Circus, Sideshow, Human Oddities, Americana, P.T. Barnum
Provenance: Ex-John Diesso Collection; Potter & Potter sales
Item Description:
Original 19th-Century Sideshow CDV: Barnum\'s Famous Little People
Premium Provenance: Ex-John Diesso Collection
An exceptional original Carte de Visite (CDV) featuring a classic group portrait of P.T. Barnum\'s most famous diminutive star attractions. The photograph depicts three little people—historically identified as Commodore Nutt, Minnie Warren (or Lavinia Warren), and General Tom Thumb (Charles Stratton)—posed alongside an average-statured man standing with his arms crossed, likely their manager Sylvester Bleeker. This visual staging perfectly illustrates the striking height contrast used in 19th-century sideshow promotions. 
Photographer Details:
The reverse features the elaborate, though faded, studio backstamp of Charles DeForest Fredricks, a prominent photographer of the era. The crest advertises his international studio locations: \"C.D. Fredricks & Co. / 587 Broadway NEW YORK / 108 Calle de la Habana HABANA / 31 Passage de l\'Opera PARIS\". 
Provenance & Collector History:
This outstanding piece of sideshow history boasts premium provenance, having formerly resided in the esteemed John Diesso Collection of circus, sideshow, and oddities ephemera. It was recently acquired via Potter & Potter sales.
Pricing Suggestion:
Group portraits featuring Barnum\'s top-tier performers by major studios like Fredricks are highly desirable. Combined with the prestigious John Diesso provenance,
[SIDESHOW]. CDV Group Portrait of Barnum Performers by C.D. Fredricks.
New York: C.D. Fredricks & Co. (587 Broadway), ca. 1860s. Original albumen carte de visite (CDV) photograph featuring three of P.T. Barnum\'s most celebrated diminutive performers (Commodore Nutt, Minnie/Lavinia Warren, and General Tom Thumb) posing alongside an average-statured manager standing with folded arms. The verso bears the faded crest of C.D. Fredricks & Co., advertising studio branches in New York, Havana, and Paris. 4 x 2 ½”. Mild fading to the image and mount wear; localized staining and fading to the verso. Provenance: Ex-John Diesso Collection; recently acquired via Potter & Potter sales. A classic Barnum-era group portrait. Good.
150/250Charles DeForest Fredricks was highly famous and influential during the mid-to-late 19th century. He was one of the most prominent commercial photographers of his era and is best known for several major historical contributions:
Pioneering the CDV in America: Fredricks is widely credited as one of the very first photographers to introduce the carte de visite (CDV) format to the United States after working and studying in Paris. This format revolutionized photography by making it affordable, easily reproducible, and highly collectible for the general public.
International Empire: He operated a massive, highly successful photography business with extravagant studios. His main New York gallery on Broadway was renowned, and he successfully expanded his empire with permanent branches in Havana, Cuba, and Paris, France.
Celebrity Subjects: Because of his studio\'s prestige, Fredricks photographed many of the most famous figures of the 19th century. His subjects included Abraham Lincoln, Edwin Booth, John Wilkes Booth, P.T. Barnum\'s star performers, and numerous politicians and international royals.
Today, his surviving photographs are highly prized by institutional archives and private collectors of 19th-century photography.