Adolph & Rudolph, Faux Conjoined Twins, Cabinet Card, c.1880s

Ivory process cabinet card of the fake conjoined twins Adolph and Rudolph. They were billed in circus sideshows as ‘Siamese twins. ' However, they were what is known in the sideshow as a ‘gaff.’ Rudolph had malformed legs, and a harness was rigged to attach him to his twin brother! Adolph and Rudolph were born in Vienna, Austria. 
 
Frank Wendt succeeded Charles Eisenmann, the renowned Victorian photographer who was celebrated for his portraits of sideshow, circus, and theatrical performers. In 1893, he took over Eisenmann’s Bowery studio before moving to Boonton, NJ, five years later. Wendt captured this cabinet card at his Boonton studio.
 
Photographer: Frank Wendt, Boonton, NJ
Format: Cabinet Card
Condition: Very Good