A sheet with two pencil sketches. At the top, a sword, annotated beneath “Sword of Robert the Bruce” and with detail notes. At left is annotated: Table of Robert the 3rd. The second sketch shows steps at the entrance to a cave, and is annotated below: "Cave at Hawthornden". Mounted on a page originally from an album, numbered in pencil at top right “144”, along with RCINs 935254, 935255 and 935256.

This sketch was made by Landells for reproduction in the Illustrated London News, commonly described as the world’s first illustrated newspaper. Landells, a well-known wood-engraver and illustrator, worked for the publication from its inception, providing drawings of a number of royal tours - including the first of Scotland in 1842, when this drawing was made - and events that were then reproduced as printed illustrations accompanying news articles. The Illustrated London News reported extensively on the lives and activities of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and the royal family.

Victoria and Albert visited Scotland for the first time in September 1842. Their journey up the east coast of England to Edinburgh was delayed by bad weather, and they arrived there, early in the morning, a day later than intended. This meant that the plans put into place for a welcoming ceremony fell into disarray. However, Albert described the visit as a “delightful, exciting tour” and it inculcated a love for the country in the royal couple that culminated in the building of their own private residence, Balmoral Castle, in the Highlands.

These drawings are preparatory sketches used for the illustrations titled “Sword of Robert Bruce” and "Subterranean passage - Hawthorden" on page 325 of the Illustrated London News, no. 21 for the week ending Saturday October 1 1842. On their last day in Scotland, 14 September, Victoria and Albert went on an excursion with the Duchess of Buccleuch (with whom they were staying at Dalkeith Palace) to visit Rosslyn Chapel and Hawthornden Castle. Victoria described Hawthorden in her journal as being "beautifully situated, at a great height above the river. To our great surprise we found quantities of people there, who had run over from Rosslyn, to meet us. We got out & went down into some very curious caves, in the solid rock, where Robert Bruce & his brave followers concealed themselves & held out for a long time. The D[uche]ss told us that there were numbers of these caves all along the river."