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. The present portrait is more intimate than the majority of works executed by Ferneley for the Earl, showing him in his home rather than out hunting. It is amusing to note that hanging on the wall to the left is the Keith Hall Ox, lot 205 in the present sale.