Last week we welcomed a couple of new arrivals at the museum, at least one of which is sure to grab your attention!
Firstly, we were pleased to hang a portrait of James Francis Stuart, (Jacobite King James VIII & III), which now lives alongside the existing portrait of George II. The painting is a modern one, nicely executed, a copy of a contemporary portrait by Antonio David. We do not know who the painter is, or when or why the painting was made, but it was being sold by an antique dealer as a picture of William II & III, which it clearly is not! We’ve had the canvas unrolled and framed, and the portrait both redresses an obvious omission in the gallery and brings a splash of colour too!
Our second new arrival was considerably larger – a life-size statue of a horse! On loan from our friends at the Battle of Falkirk Muir (1746) Trust, the horse has now taken up residence in our exhibition. It provides an opportunity for us to discuss the role that horses and horsemen played in the battle, and he is currently displayed alongside a replica dragoon uniform. Although he’s still awaiting some of his military accoutrements, we hope you’ll agree that he makes quite a statement in the gallery. And since HM King Charles III was presented with a new horse that same week by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, we have decided the two should share a name: Noble.
