practical and lies in the limitations of nineteenth-century photography.
Taking photographs in 1872 was nothing like using a smartphone today. Exposure times could be long, meaning subjects had to remain extremely still. Photographers sometimes used posing stands and hidden supports to keep people steady. A support partially hidden by clothing or furniture could potentially create an unusual shape in the finished image.
Double exposure is another possible explanation. If a photographic plate was exposed more than once, overlapping images could appear in the final portrait. Movement during a long exposure
