Portrait of a seafaring gentleman attributed to Lemuel Francis Abbott (1760-1803) The elegant sitter is pictured half length against a sea and sky background leaning upon a stone ledge. He holds a rolled map and with his body and head slightly inclined, he gazes at us with the most knowing of expressions. In the distance ships can be glimpsed.The as yet unknown gentleman sports the traditional costume of high status seafaring gentlemen the period. His costume consists of a deep blue coat which is decorated with gold lace around his cuffs and matching buttons formed from gold thread ‘arranged’ around a disc of bone or ivory. Underneath this he wears a white shirt with ruffled collar and cuffs and a scarlet waistcoat.Dark blue was a popular colour for all maritime ‘officers’, military or civilian, because it referred to the ‘blue'' ocean but it was also a serviceable colour and did not show the dirt or any stains from tar, pitch or grease that were commonplace on a ship ...