The Revd. Robert Moffat was a well-known Missionary of the London Missionary Society. The following is embossed on the mount (obscured by frame): “The scene represents the country on the banks of the Kuruman River, South Africa, with a Chief of Bechuana addressing his Parliament respecting the arrival of this laborious Missionary.” Moffat was in Africa from 1816 to 1870: when invited to speak in Westminster Abbey, he apologized for the deficiency of his language, explaining that for the 50 years he had been away he was thinking in Kaffir and translating into his own tongue.
