Yesterday I was at an art exhibition celebrating 200 years of the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh.

Various historical documents were displayed in glass cases. One of them I found very touching. It was a handwritten appeal – for royal patronage, I think – written in 1826 (see photo). (I imagine it had later been copied into a book for the Academy’s archive.)

The letter contained the following paragraph:

‘As all are not equally successful, and as some acquire neither fame nor fortune, but after many years of painful study at a time of life when it is too late to think of other pursuits, find themselves destitute, – and as others by the various infirmities incident to man are rendered incapable of exerting their talents and others are cut off before it is possible to provide for their Families, the applicants have it in view to raise a sum for the relief of the Members and Widows.’

Good for the founders of the RSA! I was impressed to think that a hundred years ago they were taking such a considerate view of the troubles likely to afflict some of their artists.