Benjamin (Thomas) Mee the Younger (1742–1796)

Benjamin Mee the Younger was associated with the Bank of England as a director, and George Romney's 1780 portrait, now in the Bank of England Museum, documents another figure from the City of London commercial establishment that formed a significant part of Romney's clientele. The 1780 date places this canvas in the earlier years of Romney's mature London practice, before the period of his greatest productivity and fame in the mid-to-late 1780s. The Bank of England Museum's portrait collection provides a coherent visual record of the institution's senior figures across the long eighteenth century, and Mee's portrait takes its place in that series. Romney's ability to project the qualities of trustworthiness, solidity, and professional competence through his handling of male commercial subjects made him a natural choice for City patrons who needed their portraits to communicate exactly those qualities.

The 1780 work shows Romney's handling at an earlier stage of development than his mid-1780s peak — more careful, slightly less fluid, but already demonstrating the fundamental qualities that would make his reputation. The face is treated with thoughtful attention, the coat and background managed economically. The composition follows the standard three-quarter professional portrait format.