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Robert Cornelius (1809–1893) was an American photography pioneer and lamp manufacturer. Cornelius began working with his father in silver plating and metal polishing in 1832. A meeting with Joseph Saxton drew him to photography. Cornelius used his knowledge of chemistry and metallurgy to perfect the daguerreotype. Around October 1839, Cornelius took this portrait of himself, the oldest known existing photographic portrait of a human in America.Photograph: Robert Cornelius