George Knapton was a portrait painter in oils and crayons. He was born in London and trained at the St Martin's Lane Academy. He was also apprenticed to Jonathan Richardson the elder. Knapton was a founder member the Society of Dillettanti in 1736, and painted twenty-three portraits (mostly in fancy dress) of the members. He also published a paper on the recent discovery of Herculaneum in 1740. He resigned as a member of the Society in 1763, but seems to have given up painting c.1755. He became surveyor and keeper of the King's pictures in 1765.