Bust of Sir John Gordon

A bust of Sir John Gordon was sculptured by Edmé Bouchardon in 1728. The bust, an example of Neoclassicism, was bought by the town council of Invergordon in 1930 for £5. It was subsequently rediscovered in 1998. In January 2026 the UK government announced, pending the potential sale of the item, that it would block the bust from being exported out of the UK, at least until April 2026.

The sculpture depicts a young Sir John Gordon. It is sculpted in marble.^[1][2] He was a significant landowner around the town of Invergordon in the Scottish Highlands. The town is named for his father, having previously been called Inverbreakie.^[3] Gordon met the French sculptor Edmé Bouchardon in Rome in 1728 while on the Grand Tour. Bouchardon was aged 30 and at the start of his artistic career; Gordon was aged 18 or 19.^[1] The bust survived a fire at in Invergordon Castle in the 19th century.^[3]

The work was described by Stuart Lochhead, an independent assessor on the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, as remarkable:

Gordon is portrayed bare-chested, evoking some of the classical sculpture Bouchardon studied at the French Academy in Rome. This rare approach reflects the artist’s ambition to merge ancient nobility with eighteenth-century elegance. A striking example of Bouchardon’s mastery and Scotland’s participation in the Grand Tour, the sculpture combines historical significance, rarity, and superb quality. This exceptional work of art deserves to be saved for the nation.^[4]

The official description of the work includes: "John Gordon of Invergordon By Edmé Bouchardon (1698–1762), French, 1728, made in Rome. Marble. Height 81 cm; width 51 cm. Inscription, on the bottom edge of the left arm: Edmund. Bouchardon Faciebat Romae; on the cartouche: JOHN GORDON ESQ.R; around the base: ANNO.AETATIS.XX.MDCCXXVIII."^[4]

The work, having probably been commissioned by John Gordon, was owned by him until his death in 1783. It was held by the related Mackenzie family, being inherited by descent until 1930, when Kindeace House, situated near to Invergordon, was put up for auction. The town council of the then Burgh of Invergordon made a successful bid for the bust of £5 and placed the artwork in Invergordon Town Hall in February 1930. Ross and Cromarty District Council then took over the local government for Invergordon in 1975, which was in turn replaced by the Highland Council in 1999. At some stage within these local government changes the bust ended up in storage.^[4]

Maxine Smith, then a councillor on Invergordon Community Council, had been trying to find the robes of town's former provosts in the late 1990s. She was told that they were likely to have been stored in a shed in Balintore. The shed was opened, and the bust of Sir John Gordon was seen to have been propping open an interior door in the shed. Paintings and ceremonial chains and robes were also stored in the shed.^[1] The Ross and Cromarty Heritage site wrote that Charles Pearson, a retired teacher, had noticed the bust previously standing against a wall at a local craft fair and had recognised its significance. Pearson sought to identify the bust by contacting the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, the Ashmolean Museum and the Louvre.^[3]

The ownership of the bust was sought, and documents were found that confirmed that it was purchased by Invergordon Town Council at auction for £5 in 1930 (equivalent to £270 in 2023).^[1] It was valued at £1.4 million by Sotheby's auction house in 2023. A private buyer has approached Highland Council with an offer of more than £2.5 million for the bust.^[2][5] Charles Pearson died in 2015 and desired that the bust be given to the National Museum of Scotland.^[3]

In 2016 the bust was displayed at the Louvre in Paris and the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles as part of the exhibition "A Sublime Idea of Beauty" of Bouchardon's works.^[2][3]

In the 2010s Highland Council suggested selling the bust and keeping any resultant funds. The proposal was opposed by Rob Gibson, then the Member of the Scottish Parliament for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross. Gibson had believed that the bust had been bequeathed in the 1920s to the community of Invergordon.^[2]

Former councillor Maxine Smith supported selling the bust to fund projects for the benefit of the local community. The art historian Bendor Grosvenor wanted the bust being loaned to Inverness Museum, the National Galleries of Scotland or the National Museum of Scotland. Art historian Caroline McCaffrey-Howarth said that it was likely to be the only Bouchardon sculpture in Scotland and that rules around the export of significant works of art might prevent its overseas dispersal.^[1] The bust is being kept in storage by Highland Council.^[2] The Invergordon Common Good Fund would benefit from any sale of the bust.^[2] The potential sale of the bust was placed on hold, pending a decision on whether the sale meets any of the three Waverley Criteria, and whether the export licence should be deferred.^[6]

On 9 January 2026, the UK government announced that a temporary export ban would be placed on any sale of the bust, lasting until 8 April 2026 in the first instance.^[7] This announcement was prompted by advice from the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA), which concluded that all three Waverley Criteria were met and that the bust represented a work of outstanding cultural and historical importance to Britain. The Committee gave an estimated value of the piece as £3.1 million at 2025 prices.^[8][4]