19th C. Doc Holliday / Morgan Earp Tintype + Article

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Exceptional Antiquities | Ethnographic Art

By Artemis Gallery

Oct 11, 2018

Set Reminder 2018-10-11 10:00:00 2018-10-11 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Exceptional Antiquities | Ethnographic Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/exceptional-antiquities-ethnographic-art-3500
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• Lot Description
  United States, ca. late 1870s to 1882 CE. Likely the only group photograph found and documented to include Doc Holliday and Morgan Earp, an original tintype group photograph that includes Doc Holliday (John Henry 'Doc' Holliday, 1851-1887), a legend of the Old West, in his later years (sitting on a stool furthest to right in middle row), with his friend and fellow Gunfight at the O.K. Corral participant, Morgan Earp (Morgan Seth Earp, 1851-1882) (second from left in second row, also seated), and their respective ladies - Morgan's wife Louisa Alice Houston (behind and to right of Earp wearing a dark floral blouse and striped skirt) and Mary Katherine "Big Nose Kate" Horony (Holliday's common law wife, seated to his right). Doc Holliday along with the brothers Morgan, Virgil, and Wyatt Earp confronted the outlaw Chochise County Cowboys in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral on October 26, 1881. Quite rare and ideal for anyone interested in history of the American West! Size: tintype 4.875" L x 3.375" W (12.4 cm x 8.6 cm); article 25.75" L x 17.25" W (65.4 cm x 43.8 cm)
  
  This photograph was authenticated by Kent Gibson - a forensic expert in Los Angeles, California on August 10, 2018 - and comes with a Forensic Declaration of Photographic Authenticity Via Face Recognition that extensively delineates the "numerical digital evidence using biometric Facial Recognition software modules" - programs that are traditionally "used by law enforcement, border security agents, and for biometric signatures in lieu of fingerprints or passwords." Gibson's "GLS" (Gibson Likeness Score) for Doc Holliday was deemed to have a reliability rating of "High" and determined to be "Authentic". Gibson's "GLS" (Gibson Likeness Score) for Morgan Earp was deemed to have a reliability rating of "Very High" and determined to be "Authentic". Gibson's "GLS" (Gibson Likeness Score) for Big Nose Kate was deemed to have a reliability rating of "Medium" and determined to be "Authentic".
  
  Gibson concludes, "All of the above forensic evidence strongly supports the conclusion that the subject (picnic) photograph is authentic and contains the image of John Henry (Doc) Holliday, his common law wife Katherine (Big Nose Kate) Horony, and Morgan Earp. I can state all of the above with a high degree of certainty as a professional forensic examiner, specializing in facial recognition, with many years of experience with old western images."
  
  According to the document, "Kent Gibson was instrumental in the recent authentication of a newly discovered tintype of Billy the Kid. These findings were presented by National Geographic Television in a two hour television special. He has authenticated images of Wyatt Earp, Annie Oakley, Pat Garrett, Jesse James, Frank James, Butch Cassidy, The Sundance Kid, Doc Holliday, John Wilkes Booth, Fred Waite, Fred Noonan, Bat Masterson and many others. Clients include the US Secret Service, the FBI, LA Superior Court, LA County Sheriff as well as numerous other Sheriff's Departments nationwide and many private law offices."
  
  Please note: This photograph was found in an envelope labeled, "Irwin Baer, Portrait and Landscape Photographer, Prescott, Arizona." Erwin Baer was a part-time photographer, Civil War veteran, mining specialist Percival Armitage, and gallery owner. As a photographer, Baer was interested in capturing territorial expansion and views of the Western frontier. Note that the envelope lists various territory sites, "Prescott and Vicinity, Walnut Grove Lake, Camp Verde and Vicinity, Flagstaff and Vicinity, Fort Grant and Vicinity, Cliff Dwellings on Beaver Creek and Coconino Canyon, Grand Canyon on the Colorado, Natural Bridge (Tonto Basin)", invites clientele to send for a catalogue, advertises "Picture Frames in Great Variety", and states, "First Premium for Landscape work at the Territorial Exposition." According to the Arizona Photograph Company Collection papers, Erwin Baer was also part of a small group of photographers in Prescott, Arizona that eventually formed the Arizona Photograph Company in the early 1900s.
  
  Accompanying this historic photograph is an article from the "Sacramento Weekly Bee" (October 29, 1881 - three days after the infamous shootout) describing the events that led to as well as the actual Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. The headline reads, "COAST DISPATCHES. ALL DOWN BUT ONE. A Lively and Desperate Battle in the Streets of Tombstone - Four Citizens Get Away with Four Cowboys." The events described were not well-known until 1931 when Stuart Lake published a biography "Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal" which was made into a 1946 film entitled, "My Darling Clementine" directed by John Ford. In 1957, the film "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" gave the shootout its legendary name!
  
  Provenance: private Oceanside, California, USA collection; the current owner purchased the Doc Holliday group photograph (nicknamed the "picnic" photo) with a group of antique photographs in a large antique collective in Prescott, Arizona, USA over 40 years ago
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
  
  #138623

  Condition

  Tintype has some expected wear - some scratches, dents, and creases. Newspaper article shows normal discoloring expected with age, and the banner appears to have been reattached with tape. It is contained in a cellophane fronted sleeve with a cardboard backing and has not been examined outside of this sleeve.
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