Portrait of an English third-rate ship. The term ‘rate’ in the title refers to the six divisions into which warships of sailing navies were grouped according to the number of guns carried for the purpose of assessing the rates of pay of their captains. The drawing, which is unsigned, once had an inscription in the upper left corner which has been cut off leaving the two last letters ‘ss’ which would have come at the end of the ship’s name in van de Velde’s phonetic spelling. The ship, of about 60 guns, is one built, or rebuilt around 1680, as it has a small escutcheon between four stern windows above, and an open gallery below.