About this image:

Sir Joshua Reynolds
Lord Heathfield of Gibraltar, 1787
Oil on canvas, 142 x 113.5 cm
© The National Gallery, London
NG111

In 1775 George Augustus Eliott, Lord Heathfield (1717 - 1790), was appointed Governor of Gibraltar. During the siege of 1779-83 he held the British fortress against Spanish attack, and was made Baron Heathfield in 1787.

In the original painting hung in the gallery, he is shown at Gibraltar during the siege, symbolically holding the key to the fortress, with a view to the peninsula in the background; a cannon points steeply down towards the sea and the sky is darkened by smoke. He is wearing what is presumably the ribbon and star of the Order of the Bath.

Lord Heathfield sat for this painting in August and September 1787. The portrait was commissioned by the print publisher John Boydell who paid for it in October of that year.

About our Epic Posters range

Simple, bold and beautiful.

Epic Posters are dramatic while still retaining the character of the original image. They herald a new age for the classic poster.

Printed on revolutionary Tyvek® paper (a patented complex weave technique that’s almost impossible to tear), these posters are very resilient and have a satin finish.

Each poster measures 6 x 4 feet (1.8 x 1.2 metres) and is delivered rolled in a tube with handy cardboard struts and robust bulldog clips for easy hanging.

Download the installation manual. (1.4 MB PDF)

This range of posters is produced in partnership with Surface View .