Catalogue of Engravers

  • This material is held at
  • Reference
      GB 133 Eng MS 1115
  • Dates of Creation
      1800
  • Name of Creator
  • Language of Material
      English
  • Physical Description
      300 x 228 mm. 1 volume (324 folios); Binding: red morocco, gilt, stamped: T. Dodd, No.20, Tavistock St., Covent Garden.

Scope and Content

A catalogue of European engravers to the end of the 18th century, compiled by Thomas Dodd. Arranged in alphabetical order of names and giving, in tabular form, the country of birth, period and place of practice, mode of exercise, class of production, marks used, date of death and age.

Administrative / Biographical History

Thomas Dodd (1771-1850), printseller and author, opened his first print shop in Lambeth Marsh in 1796. In 1798 he moved his shop to Tavistock Street, Covent Garden, and he also held successful auctions in Portsmouth, Liverpool and Manchester. By 1817, Dodd had removed to Manchester. Dodd wrote pieces on the history of engraving and the lives of engravers. The first was his 'Dissertation on the origin of the art of engraving', a lecture delivered in Liverpool in 1819. This was followed by a long-term project to compile a biographical history of the arts; it began publication in 1824 under the title The Connoisseurs Repertory; or, a biographical history of painters, engravers, sculptors, and architects, with an account of their works. His most important contribution to the history of art is his extensive manuscript 'Memoirs of English engravers, 1550-1800' (held in the British Library).

Source: Lucy Peltz, 'Dodd, Thomas (1771-1850)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004. By permission of Oxford University Press - http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/7743.

Related Material

Other collections by Dodd relating to engravers and engraving are held at the British Library (ref.: Add MSS 33394-408, 34411, 34664-7 ).