Nathaniel Dance - Conversation Piece (Portrait of James Grant of Grant,John Mytton, the Honorable Thomas Robinson, and Thomas Wynne) [c.1760]

Nathaniel Dance - Conversation Piece (Portrait of James Grant of Grant, John Mytton, the Honorable Thomas Robinson, and Thomas Wynne) [c.1760], a photo by Gandalf's Gallery on Flickr.

A conversation piece is an informal group portrait, often depicting friends. This is one of four almost identical canvases painted in 1760–61, one for each of the four sitters. With the ruins of the Colosseum plainly visible in the background, the picture records the young men's trip to Rome. Known as the Grand Tour, such travel was a standard part of the education of eighteenth-century English gentlemen.

[Philadelphia Museum of Art - Oil on canvas, 96.2 x 123.2 cm]