Robert Thew
He was born in 1758 at Patrington, Holderness, Yorkshire, where his father kept an inn. He received but little education, and for a time followed the trade of a cooper; but, possessing great natural abilities, he invented an ingenious camera obscura, and later took up engraving, in which art, although entirely self-taught, he attained to a high degree of excellence. In 1783 he went to Hull, where he resided for a few years, engraving at first shop-bills and tradesmen's cards.
Robert Thew
Lawrence Park · Internet Archive identifier: gilbertst04park · Public domain
- Born
- 1758 · Patrington.
- Died
- 1802 · Stevenage.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland · Kingdom of Great Britain
- Occupation
- engraver
- Languages
- English
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He was born in 1758 at Patrington, Holderness, Yorkshire, where his father kept an inn. He received but little education, and for a time followed the trade of a cooper; but, possessing great natural abilities, he invented an ingenious camera obscura, and later took up engraving, in which art, although entirely self-taught, he attained to a high degree of excellence. In 1783 he went to Hull, where he resided for a few years, engraving at first shop-bills and tradesmen's cards.
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wikidata · Q16859152 · wikipedia · Robert Thew
In this article
Biography
Biography
His earliest work of a higher class was a portrait of Harry Rowe, the famous puppet-show man, and in 1786 he etched and published a pair of views of the new dock at Hull, which were overlooked by Francis Jukes. Having executed a good plate of a woman's head after Gerard Dou, he obtained from the Marquis of Carmarthen an introduction to John Boydell, for whose large edition of Shakespeare he engraved in the dot manner twenty-two plates after Northcote, Westall, Opie, Peters, and others. Thew also engraved a few excellent portraits, including Master Hare, after Reynolds, 1790; Sir Thomas Gresham, after Sir Anthony More, 1792; and Miss Turner, with the title ‘Reflections on Werter,’ after Richard Crosse. He held the appointment of historical engraver to the Prince of Wales, and died at or near Stevenage, Hertfordshire, and was buried at All Saints church, Willian, Hertfordshire on 10 July 1802.
Edward Scriven is recorded as having studied under Robert Thew. The recorded working language is English. Work by Robert Thew is recorded in the collections of National Gallery of Victoria, Art Institute of Chicago, National Portrait Gallery, Yale Center for British Art and Ferens Art Gallery.
Key facts
Key facts
Robert Thew (1758–1802) was an English engraver.
Identity
Identity
King Henry the Eighth: Act IV Scene II: Abbey of Leicester. Act II, Scene ii, Southamptom.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1758
Robert Thew born at Patrington.
1802
Robert Thew died at Stevenage.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Patrington.
Birth place
Stevenage.
Death place
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q16859152: Robert ThewWikimedia Foundation
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
Further particulars
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Further particulars
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Formation and teaching. Each of those relationships is stated by the authority record rather than inferred from style.
Recognition and collections
Work by Robert Thew is
National Gallery of Victoria, Art Institute of Chicago, National Portrait Gallery and Yale Center for British Art
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Prints
4,138 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Robert RaudnerEngraver
- Robert ScottEngraver
- Robert StackhouseEngraver
- Robert StrangeEngraver
- Robert van AudenaerdeEngraver
- Robert van VoerstEngraver
- Robert VaughanEngraver
- Robert WestEngraver
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