A very fine daguerreotype of an elegant young woman wearing a madras crinoline dress. The daguerreotype is hand-colored and the jewelry is highlighted with gold.
 Handwritten inscription on the reverse: "August 26, 1845, 26 years old, Derussy daguero plaque rue des Prouvaires, Mrs. Auguste Thomas, born Marie-Aglaé Briel in 1819, on August 15, died on January 16, 1903".
 Size: 9 x 12.5 cm
 In a gold frame, 22.5 x 28 cm.
 The white mat is typical of early daguerreotypes; black mats were systematized after 1850.
 Philippe Derussy was one of the most sought-after daguerreotype portrait painters in the capital during the second half of the 1840s.
 His workshop is located on rue des Prouvaires in the Les Halles district.
 He enjoyed a rather flourishing career, declaring in 1847 that he produced 3,000 daguerreotype portraits per year. He is known to have invented a process he called the "Derussy system." All the portraits were guaranteed to be fixed with gold chloride, rendering them unalterable and full of vibrancy.