The 1743 oil-on-canvas portrait of Lawrence Washington (1718–1752), George Washington’s older half-brother and original owner of Mount Vernon, measures approximately 30½ by 25 inches and is attributed to an unknown artist, likely working in Virginia and possibly at Mount Vernon itself. The painting presents Lawrence as a confident young colonial gentleman and officer, with brown eyes and hair tied back in a queue with a black ribbon. He wears a striking red coat adorned with gilt buttons, a richly colored waistcoat described in period sources as blue or green with metallic lace trim, a white stock at his neck, and a black tricorne hat – attire that signals both his status as a prosperous planter and his military background following service in the Caribbean.

Scholars note that the portrait was likely completed soon after his marriage to Anne Fairfax and before his emergence as a leading political and military figure in colonial Virginia. George Washington later chose to hang this likeness of his admired half-brother in his private study at Mount Vernon, underscoring Lawrence’s deep personal influence. Today, the portrait remains in the collection of George Washington’s Mount Vernon, where it continues to be displayed as part of the historic estate’s interpretation of the Washington family and colonial Virginia society.