The National Portrait Gallery only collects known photographs

The National Portrait Gallery in London holds the only known photograph of 19th-century mathematician and computer pioneer Ada Lovelace (1815-1852).

Ada Lovelace is recognized today as the world’s first computer programmer, thanks to her 1843 paper in which she wrote the first algorithm on punch cards for calculation on Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine. In the same year, photographer Antoine Claudet took a daguerreotype portrait of her. Claudet learned how to use the new technology from Louis Daguerre himself in the late 1830s. He moved to London, where he established the first daguerreotype studio in 1841, which was a huge success, producing more than 1,800 portraits a year. He photographed many literary and scientific figures, including Babbage himself.

Claudette took two photographs of Ada Lovelace, both set against a landscape with trees in the background. In one photo, she has flowers in her hair and wears a lace V-neck. In another photo, she wore a veiled hat and a high-necked bustier.

The third photograph in the lot, by an unknown photographer, is not a direct photograph of Ada Lovelace, but a daguerreotype of a portrait of her taken by Henry Wyndham Phillips. This was her last portrait, painted three months before her death from uterine cancer.

The three photographs are being sold at Bonham’s auction in June with a pre-sale price of £80,000 to £120,000. The lot was withdrawn shortly before the scheduled auction. The National Portrait Gallery announced in December that it had acquired the works at a private auction.

Louise Williamson, Tax and Estate Advisor, Bonhams Valuation Department commented: “It is a pleasure to be involved in this important acquisition of Ada Lovelace’s only known photograph by the National Portrait Gallery through a private treaty sale. Private treaty sales allow eligible museums to acquire outstanding works of art or other objects from private owners at ‘special prices’, reflecting the tax benefits shared between the seller and the acquiring institution. Private treaty sales are an increasingly important way for museums to expand their collections, and it is a pleasure to work with Matthew Haley to facilitate the sale of the Bonhams.”