Short answers, pulled from the story.
A limner is an illuminator of manuscripts or more generally, a painter of ornamental decoration. This definition appears in the book Methods and Materials of Painting by Charles Lock Eastlake published in 1793 and 1865.
Dame Elizabeth Blackadder held this unique Scottish royal position until her death on the 2nd of May 2021. Her tenure marked one of the longest periods of service recorded for this specific role which remains honorary and lasts for life once appointed.
In early 19th-century America, a limner artist was one who had little if any formal training. These individuals traveled from place to place to solicit commissions from local communities including the rising mercantile class who sought status symbols through portraiture.
Works of the Gansevoort Limner reside at the National Gallery of Art today. Pieces attributed to the Freake Limner hang within the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco among colonial America's rising mercantile class portraits commissioned as status symbols.
The Victoria Limners Society operated as a group of artists working in Victoria, British Columbia from 1971 through 2008. Members worked within a variety of artistic styles including painting, sculpting, pottery, and other forms of visual art before dissolving on the 31st of December 2008.