John Chamberlaine (1745 – 12 January 1812 in Paddington Green) was an

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

and acted as keeper of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

's drawings, coins and medals from 1791 until his death in 1812. He published prints of drawings in the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

Holbein Hans Holbein may refer to: * Hans Holbein the Elder Hans Holbein the Elder ( , ; german: Hans Holbein der Ältere; – 1524) was a German painter. Life Holbein was born in free imperial city of Augsburg (Germany), and died in Issenheim, Alsa ...

Leonardo Leonardo is a masculine given name, the Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese equivalent of the English, German, and Dutch name, Leonard Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate ...

Annibale Carracci Annibale Carracci (; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother and cousin, Annibale was one of the progenitors, if not founders of a leading strand of th ...

and others, for which

Francesco Bartolozzi __NOTOC__ Francesco Bartolozzi (21 September 1727, in Florence – 7 March 1815, in Lisbon) was an Italian engraver, whose most productive period was spent in London. He is noted for popularizing the "crayon" method of engraving. Early life Ba ...

(1728–1815) the engraver and etcher, was commissioned as a printmaker.

Career

Chamberlaine was appointed to his post on the death of Dalton in 1791. He collaborated with Frederick Augusta Barnard and published eighty-four plates in 14 parts between March 1792 and February 1800. The work was titled ''Imitations of Original Drawings by Hans Holbein in the Collection of His Majesty for the Portraits of Illustrious Persons of the Court of Henry VIII''. The biographical notes were provided by

Edmund Lodge Edmund Lodge, KH (1756–1839), herald, was a long-serving English officer of arms, a writer on heraldic subjects, and a compiler of short biographies. Life and career Lodge was born in Poland Street, London on 13 June 1756, the son of Edmund Lo ...

, the

Lancaster Herald Lancaster Herald of Arms in Ordinary is an English officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. The title of Lancaster Herald first occurs in 1347 at Calais, and to begin with this officer was a servant to the noble house of Lancaster. As a ...

, the vast majority of the plates being engraved by Francesco Bartolozzi, whom Dalton had imported from

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

in 1764, and some by Anthony Cardon (1772–1813). He then published ''Original Designs of the most Celebrated Masters of Bolognese, Roman, Florentine and Venetian Schools, comprising some of the Works of L. da Vinci, the Carracci, C. Lorrain, Raphael, Michael Angelo, the Poussins and Others in His Majesty's Collection.'', London (1812). The plates for this work were prepared mainly by Bartolozzi with the assistance of his pupil, Tomkins.Dictionary of National Biography, edited by Leslie Stephen
/ref> Chamberlaine was admitted as a member of the Society of Antiquaries on 7 June 1792. He was also a member of the Society of Arts.

Provenance

The original Holbein drawings had disappeared and reappeared in royal hands a number of times since their creation in the mid-sixteenth century.

Caroline of Ansbach , father = John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach , mother = Princess Eleonore Erdmuthe of Saxe-Eisenach , birth_date = , birth_place = Ansbach, Principality of Ansbach, Holy Roman Empire , death_date = , death_place = St James's Pala ...

framed and hung them at

Richmond Lodge Richmond Lodge was a historic property located near the River Thames in Richmond, London, in what is now known as Old Deer Park, lands belonging to the historic Richmond Palace. It was located close to the King's Observatory. It should not be con ...

. In the 1740s

had them taken out of their frames and rebound in two volumes. Richard Dalton, who acted as George III’s first librarian, had engravings made of 35 of the drawings between 1774 and 1791. The plates were published by W. Richardson in 1792 and titled ''The Court of Henry the Eighth''; these reproductions turned out to be of poor quality.

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Chamberlaine, John 1745 births 1812 deaths English curators