William Robert Reid, the last owner, was clearly an avid book collector and a mildly obsessive collector of Italian furniture. When asked, the tour guide (Mike), attributed this to Mr. Reid being brought up in the Victorian era wherein a gentleman of the time would likely collect things as a symbol of ownership. The owners before Mr. Reid built up an aristocratic collection, ie. consisting of items handed down through their family, as Mr. Reid acquired most of the collection himself, I felt it far more insightful in terms of that persons interests and passions.
The part that interested me the most was Mr. Reid's book collection, these shots were taken by me...
A great deal of the more valuable books were given to the National Library of Scotland, so the collection as it stands in the castle is not as say, complete, as it was before Mr. Reid died, but this struck me as perhaps another purpose of a collection, a useful service for others who otherwise would not be able to afford a collection themselves. (I've explored this part of the collection a little more here) As the castle itself is a historical reference point, everything that the collection contains, and the collection itself, allows the visitor to understand not only the life of Mr. Reid himself, but the culture of his particular class at the time.
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