David Livingstone
- Artist: John Jabez Edwin Mayall
- Date: 1865
- Medium: albumen carte-de-visite
- Dimensions: 3 1/2 in. x 2 3/8 in. (89 mm x 59 mm) image size
- Portrays: David Livingstone
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This small portrait shows David Livingstone, a missionary and explorer who lived from 1813 to 1873. The image is about 3½ by 2 ⅜ inches—just large enough for his face to sit front‑on on the paper. You can see the fine detail of his eyes and the faint line of his jaw; the silver albumen carte‑de‑visite gives a soft, almost metallic sheen that captures light and shadow with delicate precision.
The picture was made in 1865 by photographer John Jabez Edwin Mayall, who produced around five hundred portraits. His work is noted for its crisp focus and careful composition. Livingstone appears in forty‑one such photographs, making this a small but valuable record of his likeness.
This plate was given to the Photographs Collection by Phyllis Cunnington in 1962, so it lives on a paper that has survived more than a century and keeps the memory of an important figure from Victorian exploration alive.
See it in person
David Livingstone is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
