Henry Noel Humphreys (1810–1879), Humphreys, Henry Noel, in Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 28. was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

illustrator, naturalist,

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

, and

numismatist A numismatist is a specialist in numismatics ("of coins"; from Late Latin ''numismatis'', genitive of ''numisma''). Numismatists include collectors, specialist dealers, and scholars who use coins and other currency in object-based research. Altho ...

. Humphreys was born on 4 January 1810 in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

, the son of James Humphreys, and was educated at King Edward's School there. He studied

medieval manuscripts In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

in Italy as a young man, and became an accomplished scholar in numerous subjects. In addition to his

entomological Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

texts, Humphreys wrote works on ancient

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

coins A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to ...

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

, and the art of

writing Writing is a medium of human communication which involves the representation of a language through a system of physically Epigraphy, inscribed, Printing press, mechanically transferred, or Word processor, digitally represented Symbols (semiot ...

and

printing Printing is a process for mass reproducing text and images using a master form or template. The earliest non-paper products involving printing include cylinder seals and objects such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the Cylinders of Nabonidus. The ea ...

. He died on 10 June 1879.

Works

*''A Record of the Black Prince.'' A Series of original passages from the chroniclers relating to the career and exploits of

Edward the Black Prince Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, su ...

; enriched with highly-wrought illuminations from different Manuscripts referring to the history of the period. In a carved and pierced binding. London: Longman and Co, 1850. *''British Moths and Their Transformations''. With

John Obadiah Westwood John Obadiah Westwood (22 December 1805 – 2 January 1893) was an English entomologist and archaeologist also noted for his artistic talents. He published several illustrated works on insects and antiquities. He was among the first entomologist ...

London: William Smith, 1843–1845. 2 Volumes. *''The Parables of Our Lord.''. New York: D. Appleton, 1848. London: Longman and Co, 1847. *''The Miracles of Our Lord.'' 1848. *''The Coins of England.'' William Smith, London. 1848. *''Maxims and Precepts of the Saviour.'' *''The Illuminated Books of the Middle Ages'', (large folio): a Series of Magnificent Specimens, of the size of the originals, from the finest illuminated MSS. From the 4th to the 17th Century. London Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1849. *''The Book of Ruth.'' London, Longman and Co, 1850. *''Sentiments and Similes of William Shakespeare.'' London, Longman Brown, Green, Longmans and Roberts, 1851 & 1857. *''Art of Illumination.'' (18 ) - a manual on the technique of illumination. It contains high-quality

chromolithographs Chromolithography is a method for making multi-colour printmaking, prints. This type of colour printing stemmed from the process of lithography, and includes all types of lithography that are printed in colour. When chromolithography is used to ...

, some printed in fourteen different colors. It is

bound Bound or bounds may refer to: Mathematics * Bound variable * Upper and lower bounds, observed limits of mathematical functions Physics * Bound state, a particle that has a tendency to remain localized in one or more regions of space Geography *B ...

in white leather with a chromolithograph paper label inset into the binding and lined with gold. *''The Butterfly Vivarium.'', or Insect Home: Being an Account of a New Method of Observing the Curious Metamorphoses of Some of the Most Beautiful of Our Native Insects, Comprising also a Popular Description of the Habits and Instincts of Many of the Insects of the Various Classes Referred to, with Suggestions for the Successful Study of

Entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

by Means of an Insect Vivarium''. London: William Lay, King William Street, Strand, 1853. *''The Coinage of the British Empire.'': An outline of the Progress of the coinage in Great Britain and her dependencies, from the earliest period to the present time. Published David Bogue, Fleet Stteet, 1855 with plates worked in gold silver & copper. *''Ancient Coins'': being a concise account of the origin of the art of coining, its early progress, highest development, and its gradual decay with the decline of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

. Illustrated by a number of specimens in relief, in gold, silver and copper, in positive facsimile of the originals. Grant & Griffith, 1850. *''River Gardens: being an account of the best methods of cultivating fresh-water plants in aquaria in such a manner as to afford suitable abodes to ornamental fish, and many interesting kinds of aquatic animals.'' Sampson Low, Son, and Co., London, 1857 *''The Genera and Species of British Butterflies'': being described and arranged according to the system adopted by the British Museum. Illustrated by 32 hand coloured lithographs of all the species then known to inhabit or visit the British Isles, including their caterpillars and the plants upon which they feed. London, Paul Gerrard & Son, 1859. *''The Genera of British Moths'' *''Insect Changes'' *''A History of the Art of Printing, From its Invention to its Wide-Spread Development in the Middle of the 16th Century, Preceded by a Short Account of the Origin of the Alphabet, and the Successive Methods of Recording Events and Multiplying Ms. Books Before the Invention of Printing''. London: Bernard Quaritch, 1867 (first issue).

References

External links

Victorian Books British LibraryBiolib Stuger
Scans of British Moths and Their Transformations.
BHL
''British butterflies and their transformations : arranged and illustrated in a series of plates by H.N. Humphreys ; with characters and descriptions by J.O. Westwood''.London :William Smith,1841.
BHL
'The genera and species of British butterflies : described and arranged according to the system now adopted in the British Museum; illustrated by plates, in which all the species and varieties are represented, accompanied by their respective caterpillars, and the plants on which they feed''. London :T.J. Allman 860?br>BHL
''The genera of British moths : popularly described and arranged according to the system now adopted in the British Museum : illustrated by a series of picturesque plates, exhibiting the insects in their different stages'' London :Paul Jerrard & Sons a. 1860 * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Humphrey, Henry Noel English science writers English taxonomists 1810 births 1879 deaths English lepidopterists English illustrators English naturalists English numismatists English zoologists Scholars of medieval philosophy 19th-century British zoologists 19th-century English writers 19th-century English scientists People from Birmingham, West Midlands People educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham