Portrait of Tsar Alexander II of Russia by E. Desmaisons.
 Albumen print, business card format
 Alexander II (1818–1881), Tsar of Russia nicknamed the "Liberator," is famous for abolishing serfdom in 1861. He modernized the country with judicial, military, and local reforms, while also developing the railways. His reign, initially reformist, became more repressive in the face of resistance and assassination attempts. He was assassinated in 1881, preventing the establishment of a constitutional monarchy.
 Pierre Émile Desmaisons, also known as Émilien Desmaisons (1812-1880) was a French lithographer and photographer.
 A lithographic draftsman, he succeeded to the head of his father's publishing house located in Paris at 5 rue des Grands Augustins.