Dining Room in the old house at Balmoral

Hand coloured photograph of the Dining Room in the old house at Balmoral. In the centre of the room stands a table with eight chairs. On the left is a fireplace and fire guard. In the background are two doors and the walls are hung with paintings.

Prior to its demolition in 1856, the Aberdeen artist James William Giles (1801-70) was commissioned by Queen Victoria in August 1855 to record the four principal rooms in the old Balmoral Castle. The watercolours he produced were subsequently considered too large and Wilson was asked to photograph and print them in a smaller size. Giles was then asked again to hand colour the photographs to replicate the original, larger watercolours.