Buchanan, William: Memoirs of painting: with a chronological history of the importation of pictures by the great masters into England since the French Revolution (Band 2) (London: Ackermann, 1824)

MR. GORDON’S COLLECTION.

81

with him a few fine pictures of the Italian school.
The author of these compilations was at that time
residing in Edinburgh as a student of law; and
from a love which he always had for works of
art, he availed himself of an opportunity which
presented itself of making the acquaintance of
Mr. Irvine, whom he found to be a gentleman
particularly well informed upon all matters con-
nected with the fine arts,—and he made a point
of being as much in the society of Mr. Irvine as
his time would permit.
The Italian part of the Orleans collection had
been recently purchased by the Duke of Bridge-
water. The Altieri Claudes, and some other
pictures of a high class, were at that period making
a great noise in the British capital; and Mr.
Irvine having mentioned it as his intention to re-
turn to Italy, where many capital pictures were at
that time on sale, in consequence of the heavy
contributions which had been recently levied by
the French on the proprietors of collections, the
author of these sketches, who was then a very
young man, begged to introduce to Mr. Irvine his
friend and connexion, Mr. Gordon, a gentleman
of fine taste, and who had ample means to avail
himself of the opportunity which was likely to
occur, by Mr. Irvine’s return to Rome, of forming
a small collection of works of a high class, which
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