Portrait of Sir Robert Howard

Sir Robert Howard was an English politician and dramatist who served in parliament for decades and was a brother-in-law of John Dryden, with whom he collaborated on literary projects. Howard's prominence in the literary and political circles of Restoration England made him a natural subject for Kneller, who documented the intellectual as well as aristocratic leadership of the period. The 1698 date places this portrait in the final year of Howard's life.

Howard is shown in the formal dress of a late 17th-century English gentleman with the direct, thoughtful bearing Kneller tends to bring to portraits of men of literary or intellectual distinction. The modeling of the aging face is handled with characteristic directness.