Jules Léotard, the French aerialist who invented the flying trapeze and gave his name to the garment he performed in, is depicted in two albumen carte-de-visite photographs almost certainly produced during the height of his celebrity in the 1860s. Born in Toulouse on 1 August 1838, Léotard was a French acrobatic performer and aerialist who developed the art of trapeze. On 12 November 1859, the first flying trapeze routine was performed by Léotard on three trapeze bars at the Cirque Napoléon. No photographer's imprint is visible on either mount.

In the first view, Léotard stands arms crossed before a studio pedestal, wearing his signature dark sleeveless tunic over a long-sleeved undershirt, matching shorts, white tights, and lace-up ankle boots, his auburn hair swept back and a trim mustache clearly visible. The second card shows him in a relaxed contrapposto lean against the same pedestal prop, one hand resting on its surface and a painted balustrade visible to his right, the deep V-neck of his tunic and muscular build openly displayed.

The costume he invented was a one-piece knitted garment streamlined to suit the safety and agility concerns of trapeze performance, and both photographs show him wearing the close-fitting performance dress that would eventually bear his name. In 1861 he performed in London at the Alhambra music hall, and CDVs of celebrity performers were widely sold to the public throughout that decade, making portraits like these a natural product of his fame.

One card bears a bold ink signature, "Léotard," on the reverse, along with a faint blind embossed stamp at lower center. The second card is inscribed in pencil on the reverse: "Jules Leotard (1842–1870) French Trapeze."