John Henry Bucklitch, Lord Kintore's keeper, stalking roebuck at Keith Hall

John Ferneley, Sen., was one of the most gifted painters of sporting subjects of his generation. His works are some of the most important records of 19th century Sporting Britain. The sixth son of a Leicestershire wheelwright, Ferneley's precocious talent was spotted at a young age by the Duke of Rutland who, in 1801, is said to have persuaded the artist's father to allow him to become a pupil of Ben Marshall, himself of Leicestershire origin, who was then working in London. Ferneley studied and lodged with Marshall between 1801 and 1804 and was enrolled by him in the Royal Academy Schools. Ferneley's rise to prominence was fast, exhibiting his first picture at the Royal Academy in 1806. By 1814 he had set up his studio in Melton Mowbray, the hub of the fox-hunting scene with three fashionable packs - the Quorn, the Belvoir and the Cottesmore, providing hunting six days a week. Each winter an influx of 250-300 sportsmen, distinguished by birth, profession and intellect and unaccompanied by their wives, entered into a world devoted to the chase. Ferneley flourished with a steady stream of patronage and his work became increasingly desirable.

Anthony Adrian, 7th Earl of Kintore, was an important patron of Ferneley. First mention is made of him in a letter dated 28 August 1824 from the artist to his wife, when he records going to see Lord Kintore at Keith Hall for a day's shooting with Sir Harry Goodricke. He was obviously asked to stay for a while as further letters to his wife were written from Keith Hall, in which he records receiving commissions from the Earl's friends, but being unsure of when they would be carried out as 'it will depend upon the time I have with Lord Kintore's pictures'. Correspondence continued between the two for some years afterwards.