oil painting
- Museum number
- Painting.51
- Description
-
Portrait of John Winter Jones (1805-81). H.L., body turned half-r., face nearly full.
Oil painting on canvas
- Production date
- 1873 (around)
- Dimensions
-
Height: 33.50 inches
-
Height: 764 millimetres
-
Width: 636 millimetres (C Terrey)
-
Width: 26 inches
- Curator's comments
- John Winter Jones joined the Museum in 1837 and became a protégé of the great librarian Antonio Panizzi, succeeding him as Keeper of Printed Books in 1856 and as Principal Librarian in 1866, retiring in 1878. Panizzi is often credited with the formulation of the 91 rules for scientific cataloguing but these were originated by Jones, who was also much involved in the building of the Round Reading Room. The portrait was donated by the sitter’s great-grandson, Major Maurice Nicholson. It was hung in the Boardroom, replacing an earlier copy of it by Percy Graves. The details of the two portraits are as follows:
(1) by Percy Graves after William Salter Herrick, given in 1891 by Miss Ellen Winter Jones and her sister Mrs Nicholson - now on loan to the British Library.
(2) (This portrait) by William Salter Herrick (fl. 1852-80), given in 1959 by his grandson Major Maurice C Nicholson. Martin Hopkinson (email Sept.2019) notes it was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1873 as number 678.
[For a number of years in the New Wing Boardroom this portrait was incorrectly labelled as 'Edward Bond'. The incorrect label appears in some photographs.'
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Old Boardroom.
New Wing Boardroom (to 2003)
Trustees' strongroom (in storage)
- Condition
- Cleaned by Mr Robert McKail Geddes, 1959.
Examined 2.iv.63. Hole on r. of head needs filling. Otherwise in a reasonably sound condition.
For most recent condition report see Lynne Harrison, DCDS 2.8.05.
- Acquisition date
- 1959
- Acquisition notes
- Book of Presents 1959, No. 118. Nicholson/BM Secretary, 16 February 1959 - 'I am a great grandson of one of your Principal Librarians', the senior surviving member of the family and therefore heir to the family portraits "competent portraits of middle class gentlefolk painted by competent but unfashionable artists", no one else interested - wondered if Museum would care to offer it a home.
Croft Murray (P&D)/Bridgewater, 25 February 1959 'I certainly think we ought to accept it as being the original portrait and hang it in the Baord Room in place of the copy; the copy is bad, so the original would no doubt be preferable.
Nicholson/Bridgewater 28 February 1959 - offers portrait - no charge - BM to dispose of as it wishes. (Note: arrived in appalling condition).
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- Painting.51
