Lady Cockburn and Her Three Eldest Sons  1773

Museum: National Gallery [br] As with many of Reynolds's group portraits the design is based on a composition taken from an historical source. In this case the painting is based on a 17th-century work, 'Charity' by Van Dyck; also in the Collection. It was brought to England from Antwerp in 1763, but Reynolds was probably inspired by an engraving after it. For the older bo...