This is a daguerreotype of an unidentified man in formal attire made by G.M. Howe of Portland.

Howe was a respected daguerreian, musician, and teacher who worked at 112 Middle Street from 1852-1860.

An 1852 ad in the Portland Eclectic, a literary paper, praised the elegance of Howe's business sign at his Middle Street address: "The letters are carved in antique and gothic form, neatly gilded and shaded, and, placed upon block ground, appear with admirable effect. The work was all performed by Mr. Howe, and proves him to be as skillful in other branches of art as in the sphere of his legitimate profession."