Silver & gold

Silver and Gold includes works by Robert Vance, P. M. Batchelder, William Shew, Frederick Coombs, and W. H. Rulofson - images of native Californians and those who shared the land with them, memorable images of the men and women who sought their fortunes in the gold fields. Photographs from the mining communities reflect the miners' rough houses, sunburned faces, and makeshift clothes, capturing the isolation and determination of people working under difficult conditions far from home. Essays by John Wood, poet and founding president of the Daguerreian Society; Peter Palmquist, independent scholar and curator in the field of photography; and Drew Johnson and Marcia Eymann, co-curators of the Oakland Museum exhibition that complements this volume, enhance these striking early images. In addition, annotations on the back of the photographs and written accounts of the experiences they record provide glimpses into the intentions of the photographers.