Three CDV portraits of English author Charles Dickens form this lot, each representing a distinct portrait type and production method from the height of the cartomania era, none bearing a photographer's studio imprint. The first is a close albumen bust capturing Dickens in his final years, his curly hair disheveled and his full dark beard prominent, the strong side lighting rendering deep shadows across his lined face in a composition of unusual psychological intensity. The second is a reproduction print mounted on a distinctive arched-top card, presenting Dickens in pure left profile with his right hand raised pensively to his chin, a pose that emphasizes the aquiline sharpness of his features and the thickness of his beard. The third is an albumen bust in three-quarter view, slightly softer in focus and tonal treatment, with the name "CHARLES DICKENS" typeset directly on the front mount below the image.

The first card carries a penciled "Dickens" on the front and the date "1166" below. The arched-top center card bears a large flowing blue-ink inscription "Charles Dickens" across the full reverse. The right card's reverse is blank save for dealer notation. Together the three cards document the range of portrait formats — original albumen photography, engraved reproduction, and typeset-identified photographic print — through which Dickens's likeness was commercially distributed during the 1860s.

Charles Dickens (1812–1870) was the defining novelist of the Victorian era and one of the most photographed public figures of his age, author of A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, David Copperfield, Bleak House, Oliver Twist, and A Christmas Carol. His pen name "Boz," referenced on the printed reverse of the first card, was the pseudonym under which his earliest sketches were published in 1836, and it remained an affectionate public designation throughout his career.

Reverses bear a printed red catalog notation "1166. Ch. Dickens. (Boz.)" on the first card, a blue-ink inscription "Charles Dickens" on the center card, and dealer codes "X 90," "RXLEZ 83," and "LOBAZ 89" respectively.