This year West Highland Museum in Fort William celebrates 100 years since it held its very first Jacobite exhibition, Prince Charles Edward & the ’45 Campaign Exhibition. Over the past century the organisation has accumulated one of the best collections of Jacobite material culture in Scotland.
To acknowledge this milestone in its history the Museum successfully bid at the Lyon and Turnbull Scotland Collected sale last month. With the support of Art Fund and the National Fund for acquisitions the Museum acquired an 1829 portrait miniature of Flora MacDonald by G. Murray after the portrait by Allan Ramsay. This watercolour on ivory was first exhibited in the Stuart exhibition in London in 1888.
Curator Vanessa Martin said “Although we have 16 objects of material culture in our collection attributed to the Jacobite heroine Flora MacDonald, we do not have an original portrait of her. We are grateful for the support of Art Fund and National Fund for Acquisitions for making this acquisition possible. This lovely miniature will add context to our existing collection as visitors will now be able to see an image of Flora in the exhibition alongside the objects believed once to have belonged to her.”
The Museum also acquired a rare and beautifully decorated early 18th century Scottish flintlock all metal scroll butt belt pistol made in Inverness by Alexander Cameron. Vanessa Martin said “The Museum are delighted to acquire this rare flintlock for our Jacobite collection. Although the Museum has one of the best Jacobite collections in Scotland, we do not have a pistol on display in our Jacobite gallery, and this is a significant gap in our collecting especially as the focus of Jacobitism in Lochaber was the 1745 military campaign. We are grateful for the support of the National Fund for Acquisitions, E.A. Cameron, and Michael Foxley for assisting with the purchase of this item.”
The Museum will be delivering other activities in November as part of its anniversary celebrations. On 5th November the Museum is hosting an evening at the Museum with Friends and members to see these objects up close and to welcome an exciting Culloden relic on loan to the Museum.
- On 6th and 17th November, it will be hosting online talks with art historians Count Peter Pininski and Professor Edward Corp.
- On 13th November swordsmith Paul MacDonald of MacDonald Armouries will be giving a talk in the Museum.
To find out more about these events look at the What’s On section of the website.
