Portrait of Francis Basset

Portrait of Francis Basset
Artist	Pompeo Batoni
Year	1778
Type	Oil on canvas, portrait painting
Dimensions	221 cm× 157 cm(87 in× 62 in)
Location	Museo del Prado, Madid

Portrait of Francis Basset is a 1778 portrait painting by the Italian artist Pompeo Batoni depicting the young English Grand Tourist Francis Basset, the future Baron de Dunstanville. ^[1] Batoni was a Rome-based artist who specialised in painting wealthy Britons on the Grand Tour. It was the only full-length portrait the prolific Batoni produced that year. ^[2] The background features the landmarks the Castel Sant'Angelo and St. Peter's Basilica.

It was one of a number of art works onboard the frigate Westmorland when it was taken by French ships during the American Revolutionary War. The Spanish then took possession of the cargo and the painting is now in the collection of the Museo del Prado in Madrid. ^[3] In 2024/25 the painting was on loan to an exhibition in Malaga about the art works on the Westmorland. ^{[4] [5]}

References

1. Walsh p.129
2. Cotlman p.137
3. Bowron pp. 75–76
4. "Francis Basset, I barón de Dunstanville - Colección - Museo Nacional del Prado". www.museodelprado.es (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2025-01-23. Retrieved 2025-02-14.
5. Griñán, F (13 September 2024). "Treasures from British ship return to Malaga after more than 200 years" . Retrieved 24 December 2024.

Bibliography

• Bowron, Edgar Peters & Kerber, Peter Björn. Pompeo Batoni: Prince of Painters in Eighteenth-century Rome. Yale University Press, 2007.
• Coltman, Viccu. Classical Sculpture and the Culture of Collecting in Britain Since 1760. Oxford University Press, 2009.
• Walsh, Linda. A Guide to Eighteenth-Century Art. John Wiley & Sons, 2016.