While the auctioneers at Swann have been sprinkling vernacular photography into their sales for years now, this is the first sale they’ve organized with vernacular imagery placed front and center. As we might expect, it’s an eclectic mix of the unexpected and unknown, full of quirky life and energy. There are albums and collections of images of engineering projects and aviation (most notably the Wright Brothers), beauty queens and window displays, mugshots and spiritualism, dog portraits and nudists, with a healthy dose of pop photographica – objects of various kinds with photographic images embedded in them, from cyanotype pillows to brass jewelry. Both collectors and working photographers interested in mining photographic archives should have fun exploring the rich material available here. Overall, there are a total of 297 lots available (with a selection of more traditional fine photography at the back of the sale), with a Total High Estimate of $1197600.

Here’s the statistical breakdown:

The top lot by High estimate is lot 143, (Cased Image), John Brown, early 1850s, estimated at $40000-60000.

Here’s the complete list of photographers with four or more lots in the sale, along with the number of lots on offer:

Other lots of interest include lot 31, (Spiritualism), Group of 5 British photographs, 1895-1896, estimated at $2500-3500 (image above, middle, via Swann), lot 56, (Wright Brothers), Group of 19 Photographs, 1901-1928, estimated at $20000-30000 (image above, right, via Swann), and lot 83, (Window Displays), Album of 250 photographs, 1919-1926, estimated at $5000-7500 (image above, left, via Swann).

The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.