Print of Baron William Maule-Ramsay

This hand-colored print of an etching by Edinburgh artist John Kay (1742-1826) was originally published in 1795. The subject is Baron William Maule-Ramsay* (1771-1852), the Baron Panmure, who was a member of Parliament. Lord Panmure was known as "The Generous Sportsman," the title of the engraving, due to his fondness for 'the turf' {horse racing}. We've included a photo of the black and white engraving that is in the collection of the National Galleries Scotland. The British Museum also has this engraving in their collection.

The full-length portrait shows the Baron standing beneath a tree, wearing a long red coat over a striped waistcoat and ruffled cravat. Sporting boots with spurs and a black top hat, he holds the bridle of a grey horse in his left hand and a whip in his right. The initials of the artist and the date of the of the engraving are at lower left: "JK 1795" (difficult to photograph when under glass). This print is probably a plate taken from either the 1837 or the 1842 publication in two volumes of "A series of original portraits and caricature etchings by the late John Kay."

The black and gold frame, which was chipped and repainted at the top right and left corners, measures 9 1/4 inches high by 8 inches wide, while the actual print, which is in very good condition, measures 5 1/4 by 3 3/4 inches. It's surrounded by a wide grey single-cut mat and the piece weighs just under a pound.

There is a typed label on the back, with the information correct except for the year of John Kay's death. A loop of white string stands in for a hanging wire and the frame is backed with a sheet of chipboard, secured with masking tape. This is an original antique print, not a modern copy, over 200 years old and a delight to own and display.

* Some of the information about Lord Panmure is found on the website "The Peerage" which is "A genealogical survey of the peerage of Britain as well as the royal families of Europe."

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