[Post-Mortem of a Child]

From 1800 to 1870, the major causes of death in children were tuberculosis, infant diarrhea, bacillary dysentery, typhoid fever, and contagious diseases like scarlet fever, diphtheria, and lobar pneumonia. Overall, a combination of poor sanitation, undernourishment, high fertility rates, limited medical knowledge, and socioeconomic disparities contributed to the high infant mortality rate in the 1800s. It is estimated that roughly 30 to 50 percent of children died before reaching the age of five.

This late-1840s daguerreotype is a memorial portrait of a recently deceased child who likely died of a childhood illness. Depicted in fine clothing, the child of about one to two years old lies down with eyes closed, as if simply sleeping, with a rocking chair in the background. Photography offered grieving parents the opportunity to remember their child. One of these photographs (later called “post-mortems”), was often the only image of the child. These photographs express the traditions of their time, when mourning-related artifacts were commonplace.