I love a gem tintype--something much more precious feeling about tiny things--and this portrait of a very expressive and uncomfortably positioned child, with the large hand of her semi-hidden mother wrapped around her, is all the better for its gem scale. For me, it is the blur of the mother's cropped face at upper right (feeling all the more shadowy/elusive to the naked eye) that really makes this, making the mother seem almost like a ghost or spirit, but with her literal (and metaphorical) guiding hand emphatically present. And with the child's pointer finger extended on the opposite hand as if delivering a message.

1 1/16" x 3/4" and in overall good antique condition (shot with maginification), with surface loss at upper left corner, a bit around the edges, and a little minor scratches.