State with letters erased. A three-quarter-length portrait of Augustus Keppel (1725–1786) in flag officer’s full dress uniform, 1767–1783, holding his sword and standing on the seashore. This print was engraved by James Scott after Joshua Reynolds’s oil painting of 1779, a version of which is now at the National Maritime Museum (see BHC2822). The print was published by Henry Graves in 1865. Reynolds was a good friend of Keppel and painted his portrait on several occasions. He painted several versions of the painting upon which this print was based. These portraits were presented by Keppel as gifts of thanks to the legal advisors who had defended him at a high-profile court martial in early 1779. The emphasis upon Keppel’s sword in the portrait may refer to its formal return at the end of the court martial following his acquittal. (Updated May 2019.)