The most significant paintings of the MOD Art Collection are those commissioned by the Admiralty from the artists accompanying the voyages of exploration of Cook and Flinders.
The best of these are on loan to the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich.
This engraving, after the famous Dance-Holland portrait, is particularly interesting because it is decorated with Cook's own seal.
Little is known of its provenance, but it appears to have been a donation in the early 20th century, and has hung in a succession of Whitehall offices for many years.