John Horne Tooke

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Title/s

John Horne Tooke

Maker/s

Chantrey, Francis Legatt (sculptor) [ULAN info: British artist, 1781-1841]

Category

sculpture

Name

bust

Description

Bust. White marble. The sitter is turned front, facing and looking a quarter right, with the head held somewhat forward. He wears a night-cap; he is clean shaven, but for small side whiskers. He wears a scarf and a buttoned up coat.

Production Notes

The model for this bust was executed about 1811, and a plaster was exhibited at the Royal Academy in that year. However, at that time neither the sitter nor the sculptor could afford to produce it in marble. This bust was commissioned in 1818 by George Watson Taylor, MP, but on completion in 1819 it remained in the sculptor's studio.

Production Place

England (sculptor) (country)

Technique Description

white marble, carved

Dimensions

height: (bust): 20.0 in
height: (plinth): 4 1/2 in

Period

early 19th Century

Date

1818 to 1819

Provenance

given: Lady Chantrey 1861 (Filtered for: Applied Arts collection)

Sir Francis Chantrey; Lady Chantrey

Given by Lady Chantrey

Inscriptions/Marks

1. 
   Position: signed at back
   Method: inscribed
   Content: F. Chantrey Sc
   

Documentation

1. Chapman, H.A. (1898) A Handbook to the Collection of Antiquities and Other Objects Exhibited in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge (Cambs.) [page: p. 6]
   [comments: Publ. Illustrated opposite p. 6 and see p. 6; and 2nd ed. 1904, opposite p. 6 and p. 6]
2. Goodison, J.W. (1955) Catalogue of Cambridge Portraits I The University Collection, Cambridge (Cambs.): Cambridge University Press [page: p. 87]
   [comments: Publ. p. 87, no. 123, plate XX]
3. Potts, Alex (1980) Sir Francis Chantrey 1781-1841, London? [page: p. 15]
   [comments: Pub. Illustrated, p. 15, no. 5]
4. (1989 - 90) Treasures from the Fitzwilliam: ''The Increase of Learning and other great Objects of that Noble Foundation'', Cambridge (Cambs.) [page: p. 130]
   [comments: Publ. p. 130, no. 131]
5. Penny, Nicholas (1992) Catalogue of European Sculpture in the Ashmolean Museum 1540 to the Present Day, Volume III, Oxford [page: p. 247]
   [comments: Publ. Illustrated vol. III, p. 247]
6. Lieberman, Ilene D. The Ledger and Commentaries, [page: pp. 90-100]
   Source title: An Edition of the Ledger of Sir Francis Chantrey, R.A., at the Royal Academy, 1809-1841, Walpole Society (1994)
   [comments: Publ. Illustrated and discussed pp. 90-100, ill. pl. 60. Ledger 81b.]
7. (2005) Treasures of the Fitzwilliam Museum, London: Scala [page: 166]
   [comments: Publ. Illustrated in colour with short text]
8. Dunkerley, Samuel (1995) Francis Chantrey, Sculptor, From Norton to Knighthood, Sheffield: Hallamshire Press [page: p. 35]
   [comments: Ref. For further information about Chantrey. Horne Tooke, ill. p. 35, pl. 5, no. 4. See index for references to him.]

Other Notes

John Horne read law at Cambridge before taking holy orders, and received a curacy in Brentford. In 1782 he adopted the surname of his friend William Tooke. A radical reformer in politics, he founded the Constitutional Society, and was in favour of American independence. He was arrested in 1794 for high treason for expressing support, in 1790, for the French Revolution, but was found not guilty. Chantrey was introduced to Tooke by a fellow sculptor, Joseph Banks. The plaster bust of Tooke which he exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1811 made his name as a portrait sculptor. This marble was commissioned in 1818 by George Watson Taylor, MP, but on completion in 1819 it remained in the sculptor's studio.

Accession Number

M.1-1861 (Applied Arts)
(Reference Number: 30919; Input Date: 2001-06-25 / Last Edit: 2011-07-22)