Carte-de-visite of Mary Barker Bowen shown in bust portrait. Her body faces the camera, but her head is turned a quarter to her left and she looks off camera. Her hair is parted at the center and pulled into a chignon at the nape of her neck. She wears a dark bodice with a white collar and an oval brooch at her front neck. The bottom portion of the image is purposefully faded in the popular style of the time.