In this article, we take you on a fascinating visual journey of the Baillies of Mellerstain through some of the family portraits which hang side by side on the walls of the house to this day.
For 500 years Britain has been a nation of portrait lovers but portraiture as an art form can be traced back to ancient Egypt, where it flourished more than 5,000 years ago. Long before the invention of photography, a painted, sculpted or drawn portrait was the only way to record the appearance of someone. Portraits were mostly reserved for those deemed important enough to be honoured with a work of art bearing their likeness, with Royalty, nobility and important religious and historic figures being the most common subjects.
But portraits have always been more than just a record, they have been used to show the power, importance, virtue, beauty, wealth, taste and learning of the subject.
As one of the truly great houses of Scotland, the history of Mellerstain has been entangled with national history for at least five hundred years. The family history of the Baillies of Mellerstain has been documented and depicted in portraiture across the centuries though sadly there is no existing portrait of George Baillie who purchased Mellerstain in 1642.
As well as introducing you to some of the individual family members and the role that they have played in the Mellerstain story, this visual timeline provides a fascinating record of the family in picture and the changing styles in art across the centuries.
And with so many of the owners of Mellerstain named George Baillie, it is undoubtedly useful to introduce some of them with their own individual portrait.
