These rare, gem-like images are small, toned gelatin silver prints, which were made in the early part of the 20th Century. Bentley is the celebrated son of Jericho, Vermont.

The following comes from the essay, “Snowman,” in the Spring 2005 issue of APERTURE:

“The story of Wilson A. “Snowflake” Bentley has echoes of Jack and the Beanstalk. To the mystification of his dairy farming parent in northern Vermont, the teenage Bentley, in effect, traded in the cow for a view camera – and found his happy ending in the form of a lifetime of photography and discovery. Born is 1865, Bentley lived and worked until 1931. Over he course of this career, he systemically demonstrated that each snowflake is unique and that all are dendricular (six-pointed). But it is the beauty of Bentley’s work that merits critical recognition today. His images are jewels: faceted, spiky, lacey, and graphic. They are matrices of light and shadow, each snowflake diligently captured, magnified, photographed and meticulously printed”.