Portrait of Piotr Potyomkin (1617-1700)

Piotr Potyomkin was a Russian diplomat who visited England in 1681-82, and Kneller's portrait of him represents a rare window onto the expanding diplomatic contacts between Russia and Western Europe in the period before Peter the Great's great Western turn. Russian ambassadors and envoys were notable figures in London's social scene, and the commission to paint Potyomkin demonstrates Kneller's position as the portraitist of the international diplomatic community passing through the English court.

Potyomkin is shown in rich Russian court or diplomatic dress, exotic by English standards, with the formal bearing expected of a senior official on a state mission. Kneller renders the unfamiliar costume with careful attention to the distinctive textiles and decorations.