Oval miniature in watercolour on ivory in an oval gilt metal surround, set in a black-lacquered rectangular wooden backing with a brass suspension ring and hanger of acorns and oak leaves, top centre. Nelson is shown head and shoulders, in uniform including hat, looking to viewer's left, against a neutral background. Colour fading, especially of the blues, has given the whole a brownish cast. The portrait is a copy of that done by Devis in several oil versions, the Museum's being BHC2270. He did the original for Dr Beatty, surgeon of the Victory, based on taking sketches from Nelson's body as a witness to Beatty's post-mortem on it, carried out as the ship brought up the Channel from Portsmouth in December 1805. That was engraved in Beatty's full account of Nelson's death (1807) and the print, rather than an original oil version, is the most likely direct source of this reasonably good copy, which is from the Sutcliffe-Smith Collection of Nelsoniana (no.79).