Watson and the Shark was inspired by an event that took place in Havana, Cuba, in 1749. Fourteen-year-old Brook Watson, an orphan serving as a crew member on a trading ship, was attacked by a shark while swimming alone in the harbor. His shipmates, who had been waiting on board to escort their captain ashore, launched a valiant rescue effort. Copley chose to depict the moment of highest dramatic intensity -- the instant just prior to the third, presumably fatal, attack. Viewers had no way of knowing that the lad would be plucked from the jaws of death by his stalwart companions. Brook Watson, a young sailor out for a swim, was attacked by a shark and saved by his shipmates. The shark bit off part of Watson's leg, but he recovered and went on to live a well-documented, one-legged life as a merchant and politician in London, and eventually served a term as mayor from 1796-97. It is likely that Watson commissioned the painting from Copley.