This is the first of two portraits by Ramsay of the historian and philosopher, David Hume. It was painted during Ramsay’s extended stay in Edinburgh in 1754, when, together with Adam Smith, Hume and Ramsay helped found an exclusive debating club known as the Select Society. In the same year, Hume also published the first volume of his celebrated History of England. Ramsay’s portrait skilfully captures Hume’s appearance at this important moment. Presenting him as a worldly but leisured gentleman, it shows the philosopher wearing a richly embroidered waistcoat and fashionable turban in place of his usual, more formal wig. His gentle half-smile suggests that he is in a state of thoughtful attention, perhaps on the point of giving a witty response to a fellow member of the Select Society.