Proof before letters. A three-quarter-length portrait of Thomas Graves (1725–1802) in admiral’s undress uniform, 1787–95, with a gold chain around his neck. Graves’s right arm is suspended in a sling and his sleeve has been slit from wrist to elbow and closed with ribbons. He rests his left hand on his hip, above the hilt of his sword. A naval battle is represented in the background. This print was engraved by Francesco Bartolozzi after an original painting by James Northcote, probably the portrait of Admiral Lord Graves which Northcote exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1795. The location of Northcote’s painting is currently unknown. The portrait was engraved as a head-and-shoulders for the ‘European Magazine’ and published on 1 October 1795. This print shows the serious injury that Graves sustained to his right arm at the Battle of the Glorious First of June in 1794, at which he was second-in-command of the victorious British fleet under Earl Howe. Graves played an important part in the victory, for which he was raised to the Irish peerage as Baron Graves and received a pension of £1000 per annum, but the severity of his injury ended his seagoing career. This print shows Graves’s wearing the gold chain that was awarded to flag officers who had served at the Glorious First of June. The chain was supposed to be worn with a gold medal but the medals were not ready until 1796, hence officers wore only the chain before this date. Bartolozzi subsequently added the medal to later versions of this print (see PAF3662 and PAG6444). For another impression of this print, see PAG9326. (Updated April 2019.)