Unknown artist
Portrait of Conyers Middleton (1683–1750)
ca 1730–35; oil on canvas

Middleton was elected to the new post of Protobibliothecarius or Principal Librarian in 1721. He was well connected with antiquarian circles in both London and Continental Europe, and collected antiquities during his visit to Rome in 1723–24. He later sold his collection to Horace Walpole. Middleton’s biography of Cicero was published in 1741, and in this portrait he is shown holding a copy of Cicero’s works.

Gift of Mrs Mary Heberdon, 1802