James, Duke of Hamilton, was the close friend and principal Scottish advisor to Charles I. This picture shows him aged twenty-three dressed in a rich silver suit, embroidered with metal thread, and the softest leather boots, folded back into deep tops. Hamilton appreciated the work of Mytens, the leading court portraitist, and he had been painted by him six years earlier. Like his king, Hamilton was a keen collector of art. Following his king politically cost Hamilton his head. He was executed less than six weeks after the king, on the same scaffold at Whitehall.