Description

This stunning quarter plate ambrotype is signed by Charles Rees, arguably the best of Southern photographers.  The Confederate lieutenant pictured is John L. Bratten of Company A (Albemarle Guard), First North Carolina Infantry Regiment, the famed “Bethel” Regiment.  Bratten is identified by a family document of births, deaths and marriages which is inside the case.  Bratten is seated at the Rees table and is holding a militia sword.  He has a holstered pistol on his belt.  The belt plate is strangely a two piece Virginia, as some of the backwards “Sic Semper Tyrannis” is visible under magnification.  The plate is partially gilded.  I suspect that Bratten either borrowed the belt or used a prop for the photograph.  The key feature of the image is the lettering on the forage cap.  Rees gilded the letters so that they could be read by a viewer of the image, meaning that they are not backward.  From top to bottom there is an “A” for Company A, a “1” for First Regiment, and an “AG” for Albemarle Guard.  These are about the best letters I have seen on a cap, and they verify the provenance of the image.  Bratten’s uniform is also unique, and is beautifully tinted by the photographer.  He is wearing 1st lieutenant shoulder straps, and as with most records remaining from that time, there is some confusion.  He is listed as a 2nd lieutenant in CWData and on his gravestone.  He is listed as a lieutenant in the Record of NC Troops, and a 1st lieutenant in the Find a Grave writeup.  I believe this can be attributed to the lack of detailed records remaining.  He is listed as 41 years old in CWData, but was born in 1818.  He is listed in Find a Grave as 74-75 years old when he died.  However, the date of his death in the family record matches that in Find a Grave.  Images of this caliber do not come along often, and this one has many fine attributes.  It is a quarter plate signed Rees.  It is an identified officer from the famed Bethel Regiment, with good family provenance.  It is a double armed Confederate with a state belt plate.  It has superb lettering on the cap.  It is housed in a very nice thermoplastic case “The Capture of Major Andre.”  An image for the discerning, high-end collector.