Cabinet card studio portrait of Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte, 1808–1873), Emperor of the French from 1852 until the collapse of the Second Empire in 1870. The sitter appears seated beside a draped studio table with a book, wearing formal evening dress consisting of a dark coat, waistcoat, and bow tie. Several decorations and orders are visible on the left breast, consistent with imperial portrait conventions of the period. The emperor’s distinctive moustache and receding hairline match widely known photographic likenesses taken late in his reign. The mount bears the imprint W. & D. Downey, Photographers, 57 & 61 Ebury Street, London, S.W., with a small royal copyright device. The elaborate backmark states the firm were “Photographers by Special Appointment to Her Majesty the Queen and to the Imperial & Royal Families of Europe,” surrounded by numerous heraldic devices representing European royal houses. Downey was among the most prominent London portrait studios of the late nineteenth century, active in photographing royalty and European aristocracy. The ornate backmark and royal warrant suggest production during the later Victorian period when such commemorative portrait cards of notable figures were widely collected.