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| Anna Maria Braunin Bust of William III (reigned 1688-1702) modeled ca. 1700 polychrome wax National Galleries of Scotland |
"William was a prince of the House of Orange, the royal family of the Netherlands. He came to power in 1672 when he was appointed Captain-General and Stadholder and led the Dutch to victory over the French. In 1677 William married his cousin Mary, eldest daughter of the future James II of England. In 1688 William accepted the invitation of seven Protestant peers to invade England and dislodge his Catholic father-in-law, now king. James fled to France, and William was offered the throne jointly with Mary in 1689. This unsettling coloured wax image presents the king as a military hero; William spent much of his reign at war, first in Ireland and then against the French in Flanders."
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| Juriaen Pool Portrait known as James Hamilton, Lord Pencaitland ca. 1680-90 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
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| Alexander Munro Portrait of Agnes Gladstone ca. 1855 plaster relief National Galleries of Scotland |
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| Charles Beale Portrait of Mary Beale, portrait painter ca. 1680-90 drawing National Galleries of Scotland |
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| John Faed The Evening Hour - Portrait of the Misses Bennie and Mr J. Noble Bennie 1847 watercolor on ivory National Galleries of Scotland |
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| Thomas Faed Life study of John Mongo - professional life-model at Edinburgh Trustees' Academy 1847 oil on paper, mounted on panel National Galleries of Scotland |
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| George Jamesone Portrait of Lady Mary Erskine, Countess Marischal 1626 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
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| Otto Bache Study of the mummified head of James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell (ca. 1535-1578) third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots 1861 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
"James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, is a notorious figure in Scottish history. He is most associated with the murder of Lord Darnley, second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots – then abducting Mary, raping her and forcing her hand in marriage. As a result of the Scottish nobility's outrage over these acts, Bothwell fled to Denmark, where he was arrested and imprisoned in Malmö Castle. Bothwell was reported to have been kept prisoner in the dark, tied to a post half his height so he could not stand. He died ten years later. He was buried at Faarevejle, but it was discovered that the sea air had preserved his body, which was exhumed several times and displayed in an open casket at Frederiksborg Museum in Copenhagen."
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| Samuel Sidley Portrait of Arabella Bray, Lady Wolfe-Murray ca. 1890 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
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| Samuel Peploe Self-portrait ca. 1900 oil on panel National Galleries of Scotland |
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| John Henry Lorimer Portrait of Sir Robert Lorimer, architect 1886 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
"John Henry Lorimer's portrait of his younger brother shows him working in the Edinburgh office of Sir Robert Rowand Anderson, the architect of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. Robert Lorimer became one of the leading Scottish architects of the early twentieth century. Following the ideas of the Arts and Crafts movement, he was responsible for many restorations of Scottish castles, encouraging the revival of traditional skills."
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| John Maxwell Portrait of Emma Gillies ca. 1928 oil on panel National Galleries of Scotland |
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| William Strang Self-portrait ca. 1905 oil on canvas National Galleries of Scotland |
"William Strang was a talented painter as well as a masterly and prolific printmaker. His etchings include striking portraits of sitters such as Thomas Hardy, Rudyard Kipling and Robert Louis Stevenson. Towards the end of his life Strang etched less and painted more. Inspired by Rembrandt, he produced a series of self-portraits in a variety of guises. This particular one shows the artist wearing a 'fez' – a red felt hat that originated in Morocco, but was worn throughout the Ottoman Empire during the nineteenth century."
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| William Nicholson Portrait of Mabel Pryde (the artist's first wife) 1897 pencil and watercolor on card National Galleries of Scotland |
– texts based on curator's notes from the National Galleries of Scotland