Born and educated in Edinburgh, Blair was a minister, preacher and critic whose published sermons were translated into many languages. He was part of the Edinburgh literary and philosophical set, and a member of the 'Poker Club', which also included David Hume and Adam Smith. He was described as being full of harmless vanity and very particular about his dress and manners.
James Tassie (Scottish, 1735 - 1799)
Tassie was born in Pollokshaws, Glasgow. He trained first as a stone mason and then attended the Foulis Academy in Glasgow. Tassie moved to Dublin in 1763, where he learned how to make imitations of antique cameos. He invented a formula for a type of glass paste which he used for the rest of his life to make gems and portrait medallions. Tassie moved to London in 1766. His reproductions of antique gems were avidly collected by patrons as distinguished as Catherine the Great of Russia. He was also the leading portrait modeller in Britain, making around five hundred medallions of his contemporaries.
