Uncovered photo said to be of Chopin on deathbed in 1849
Wladyslaw Zuchowski of Gdansk recently reported the purchase of a daguerreotype from a private owner in Scotland. The image is dated 1849, the year Chopin died in Paris, and the head resting on the pillow sure looks like the great composer.
Experts are skeptical, as well they should be. Fraudulent things are always popping up. And in the case of Chopin, jokes have been known to be pulled, too -- years ago, a British record magazine announced with all due serious the discovery of a primitive recording device supposedly capturing Chopin at the piano. It was mostly hiss and pop and scratch, with a very dull performance of a mazurka or something, as I recall, but I know a few people who bought the idea for a while.
It will be interesting to see how this daguerreotype story develops (it probably won't be covered as painstakingly as the purported Ansel Adams negatives last year). Here's a video news clip about the alleged Chopin photo:
Comments
I don't think it looks like Chopin. The lips are too thin and the hair is parted on the wrong side. Compare for yourself by looking at a picture of his death mask at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/chopinexperience/chopin_gallery.shtml
Posted by: CS | March 16, 2011 2:13 PM