In addition to scientific instruments, exotica and examples of English craftsmanship, Macartney and his Embassy brought portraits of George III and Queen Charlotte. These images, along with a book of pictures of notables of England and their estates, were intended to give the Chinese insight into the wealth and respectability of Britain.

Such portraits came in use and in one reported instance allowed Macartney and his men to avert a potential diplomatic crisis. Upon arriving in China, Macartney was informed that one of the requirements of an audience with the emperor was the performance of a series of bows, known as the kowtow. Macartney initially refused to partake in this ritual, arguing that he could not be seen to be paying more homage to the emperor than he would to his own king. However, after many tense discussions and awkward correspondence, Macartney proposed a solution: he would kowtow to the emperor as long as a member of the Chinese court of similar stature would kowtow before a portrait of George III.