John Home 

This is Henry Raeburn’s portrait of John Home, made in Scotland, sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century. Raeburn became the leading portrait painter in Edinburgh, a city which was then at the heart of the Scottish Enlightenment. His portraits tell us much about the individuals who shaped Scottish intellectual life at this time. Here, Home is depicted in a dark coat and white wig, typical of the professional classes. Home was a Church of Scotland minister who became a celebrated playwright. His most famous play, Douglas, caused a scandal when it was first performed in Edinburgh in 1756, because it was considered inappropriate for a minister to write for the stage! By studying the biographies of figures such as Home, and understanding the social and religious values of the time, we can understand the cultural significance of Raeburn’s portraits. They offer us a window into the world of Enlightenment Scotland.