American Historical Ephemera & Photography

Seated portrait of a pair of finely dressed gentlemen with long hair, holding hands and smoking cigars. (Some surface scratches and rubs, other imperfections, some areas with little definition where uneven/worn away lacquer can be seen through the image; unsealed.) Housed in a pressed paper case. The fellows each wear a gold-highlighted 6-point star, possibly of fraternal significance. Red tinting appears throughout the image, at the end of each cigar, on the men's lips, and on portions of the tie worn by the gentleman on the viewer's right. Each man wears a jacket with wide velveted lapels and a gold-highlighted watch chain. The gentleman on the viewer's left also sports a gold-highlighted pinkie ring on the hand with which he clasps his mate's hand. 

Modern handwritten note with image identifies the subjects as "Harley and Wise Bruton / 2 Brothers - Major from South Carolina," though this is not supported by any intrinsic evidence or external research and cannot be confirmed.