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200-Year Art Mystery Solved: Raeburn's Burns Portrait Rediscovered
25 Jan
Summary
- A missing Sir Henry Raeburn portrait of Robert Burns was found after 200 years.
- The painting was commissioned in 1803 by publishers for book engravings.
- Dr. Bill Zachs discovered the lost masterpiece at a London auction.
A painting of poet Robert Burns by renowned artist Sir Henry Raeburn, lost for two centuries, has been rediscovered. Commissioned in 1803 by publishers Cadell and Davies for use in book engravings, the portrait was delivered a year later but subsequently vanished, sparking a mystery that has endured for 200 years.
Burns scholar Dr. Bill Zachs identified the missing work at a London auction in March 2025, part of a house clearance. He recognized it from a letter received twenty years prior from Alexander Cunningham, a friend of Burns and custodian of the original Nasmyth portrait, who had commissioned Raeburn.
While the Nasmyth painting served as a template, Raeburn's rendition depicts a younger, more vivacious Burns. Experts, including Lesley Stevenson from the National Galleries of Scotland, have confirmed the attribution, praising Raeburn's distinctive style. The rediscovered portrait is now on public display in Edinburgh alongside the Nasmyth painting.
