Possibly a portrait of the French ship ‘Superbe’, viewed from the starboard quarter. She was built in 1671 as the ‘Vermandois’, 68-76 guns. She was renamed in 1671 and broken up in 1687.

On the tafferel, there is a crowned shield bearing three fleur-de-lis amid arms and trophies. Immediately below there are five windows and below these, a further eight windows. There are Tritons on the rail above.

The drawing probably shows one of the two sister ships, ‘Orgueilleux’, or ‘Superbe’. The former remained in port in 1672 to have a third deck added, but des Rabesnières flew his cornette in the ‘Superbe’ in 1672 and she did not have her third deck added until 1673.

The work has been rubbed on the back and is probably an offset, completely worked up with pencil. Van de Velde may have drawn the ‘Superbe’ in 1672 when des Rabesnières had his cornette in her and when she was still a two-decker, but from other drawings on the same paper, it would seem that this drawing was made in 1673 from an earlier drawing.