[Engraved membership certificate on vellum admitting Andrew Duncan to the Royal Company of Archers.]
Royal Company of Archers.
[Edinburgh : s.n.,
1771?]
'At Edinburgh the thirteenth day of July. One Thousand seven hundred seventy one years. The Council of the Royal Company of Archers. After tryal taken by the judges of the Company & their report; have admitted received and hereby admit- and receive you Andrew Duncan physician in Edinburgh.'--text.
Admission to membership was a high honour as the Company, formed in 1676, was a select and aristocratic group. Membership is by election and members need to be Scots or at least have strong Scottish connections. Andrew Duncan, the elder (1744-1828), became Professor of Theory of Medicine at Edinburgh University as well as President of the Royal College of Physicians in 1790. Having witnessed the poor treatment of the mentally ill, he proposed the erection of a public Lunatic Asylum, which was built in 1807 and eventually grew into the Royal Edinburgh Hospital.
Duncan, Andrew, 1744-1828
Royal Company of Archers
Scotland Edinburgh.