Sir Richard Jebb (1729–1787)

Sir Richard Jebb from 1770 by Johann Zoffany depicts one of the most prominent physicians of Georgian London, who became physician to George III and attended the king during his famous episodes of mental illness. Jebb's portrait reflects Zoffany's connections to the medical and scientific elite of eighteenth-century London, where his combination of technical precision and social facility made him the preferred portraitist for those who valued accuracy of observation. Zoffany's oil technique achieved exceptional textural fidelity in the rendering of fabrics, scientific instruments, and domestic interiors, combining Flemish-inspired precision with a natural observation of group dynamics. The Royal College of Physicians holds this portrait within its historical collection, where it serves as a record of one of the organization's distinguished fellows — connecting the artistic representation to the institutional memory of a professional body whose history overlaps with the history of British medical practice from the Tudor period onward.

The physician's portrait is rendered with appropriate dignity and precision, with Zoffany's detailed technique capturing the sitter's professional bearing and individual features.