John Thompson (engraver)

John Thompson (25 May 1785 – 20 February 1866) was an English wood engraver. He is known for his engravings in William Yarrell's 1843 History of British Birds. He was described as the most distinguished wood-engraver of his time.

Thompson also engraved the design for the 1839 penny postage envelope, on a brass plate; and the design for the iconic figure of Britannia which appeared on British banknotes.

Thompson was born in Manchester to a London merchant, Richard Thompson.

He trained under the engraver Allen Robert Branston, and then collaborated with the artist John Thurston. He engraved around 900 of Thurston's designs from 1814 onwards including illustrations for Butler's Hudibras in 1918. He is described as Branston's "most celebrated pupil".

He illustrated many books, becoming in the words of Freeman Marius O'Donoghue in the Dictionary of National Biography "the most distinguished wood-engraver of his time", and "perhaps the ablest exponent that has ever lived of the style of wood engraving which aimed at rivalling the effect of copper". He is thanked by William Yarrell in the preface to History of British Birds for engraving the original drawings by Alexander Fussell, "nearly five hundred of the drawings on wood here employed", in what was a "very long series of engravings".

As well as wood engravings for books, Thompson engraved the design for the penny postage envelope "in relief on brass" in 1839, and in 1852 he engraved on steel the figure of Britannia which appeared on British banknotes for the rest of the nineteenth century.

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