Charles Townley and Friends in His Library at Park Street, Westminster

Charles Townley and Friends in His Library at Park Street from 1781 is one of Johann Zoffany's most celebrated conversation pieces, depicting the great collector surrounded by his classical antiquities. The painting documents one of the most important collections of Greco-Roman sculpture in eighteenth-century England, now in the British Museum. Characteristic of the artist's mature approach, the work displays meticulous detail in costume and setting, warm intimate lighting, vivid individual characterization that preserves the energy of live performance.

The complex group portrait balances multiple figures with the detailed rendering of the classical sculptures, creating a visual inventory of the collection within an intimate social setting.