Portrait de Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte en Prince-Président 1852

This striking 1852 salted paper print by Gustave Le Gray depicts Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, the future Emperor Napoleon III, in a formal portrait. Le Gray was a pioneer in photography and used the "wet collodion" process for this image, resulting in a high-quality, detailed image. The portrait captures Bonaparte in a seated position, his attire and posture conveying power and authority. This photograph, now part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection, exemplifies the evolving role of photography in capturing historical figures and events in the mid-19th century.