Found an old glass 1/2 plate photo

[Jack Conrad]

I'd like to share it here on RFF. It's obviously a studio shot, and
I'm guessing late 1800's. I have a theory of what it's illustrating
but thought I'd get some feedback before I jump to conclusions.

DSC04710 by Jack Conrad, on Flickr

 

[oftheherd]

I don't really know. The paddle holder's paddle has the word Plymouth. It that is the car, it would put in the early 1900s. It surely must be a parlor shot, but one wonders why with that action. The paddler seems to me too young to be a teacher, and I note he appears to have a wooden cloths pen on his ear.?

Who knows. Interesting photo nonetheless.

 

[Jack Conrad]

Thanks for the response, oftheherd. I've been out of commission the last couple days. I think the image is an illustration depicting the Puritan ethic, with Plymouth on the paddle alluding to Plymouth Rock, where the Pilgrims landed. The clothes pin on the ear suggests the old adage' "This will hurt me more than it will you," and the magazine on the floor suggests the boy is being punished for reading pulp fiction rather than studying or reading the Bible as a proper boy should.