Thomas Chatterton Manuscript Project
Chatterton in Art
'Portraits' of Chatterton
Engravings - Paintings - Sketches - Descriptions
Unknown 'Portrait of Chatterton' Sold at auction
I regret to say that the only ‘proof’ of its veracity is the writing on the back of the frame which is as follows :
'Thomas Chatterton, The Poet, when a boy.'
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The problem with the claim is that Chatterton did not become known as a 'Poet' in his own right until after his death. So the statement could not have been written until the 1770s, which, if the statement is contemporary with the silhouette, then it cannot be Chatterton 'when a boy'. The other issue is that the image itself, to my eyes at least, is of a young man in his late teens, dressed in clothes beyond the means of an apprentice Scrivener.
One thing we do know, is that Chatterton researchers have been searching for a portrait since the day he became famous - indeed they were looking when his sister was still alive, surely she would have stated if a portrait existed.
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The lot was sold on the 20th March, at Cheffins Auctioneers - will we ever hear more of this interesting lot.
1. Thomas Chatterton? 1797
4. Thomas Chatterton?
7. Thomas Chatterton?
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2. Thomas Chatterton? 1837?
5. Thomas Chatterton?
8. Thomas Chatterton?
Christie's 2005
3. Thomas Chatterton? 1837
6. Thomas Chatterton?
9. Thomas Chatterton?
By Gainsborough?
I am currently working on a control page for each of the above portraits. Click a portrait above for a link to a control page containing our current knowledge.
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For a definitive report regarding the likelihood of the existence of a genuine portrait of Chatterton, check out The Athenaeum, April 1891 : View
There are a lot of fanciful representations of Chatterton. The 'Goggle Eyes' image (no. 1 above), is from The Monthly Visitor in 1797. It is, to my knowledge, the first time a supposed portrait of Chatterton appeared in print, but without any provenance. It seems to me that the artist was exaggerating the eyes, based on the claim that Chatterton had eyes that blazed, especially the left eye.
It is worth noting the similarities between this portrait and the supposed portrait of Chatterton (no. 3 above) in Dix's 1837 edition of 'The Life of Thomas Chatterton' ; perchance it shows that the portrait in Dix is, to some degree, derivative.
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Dix had the right idea when he included the portrait in his 1837 edition, as it always helps to be able to put a face to a name - which makes Chatterton less abstract. For this reason I will use portrait number 2, which is the original painting that the engraving in Dix was based on. The Dix engraved portrait, has become the standard image used since 1837, even though it was proven to be a forgery perpetrated by Dix himself and, according to Mr Hake, a past Keeper of the National Portrait Gallery, it "Persists as a Popular Representation of the Poet." So, as far as the Chatterton Manuscript Project is concerned, portrait no. 2, is Chatterton's 'Shakespeare bust'.
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I should add that I agree with Meyerstein's definitive statement : View, that there are no known authentic paintings or engravings of Chatterton.
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However, we do have a handy description of Chatterton. It was written by William Seward on the endpapers of an edition of Gregory's The Life of Chatterton (1789). The book was bought at auction by J. T. Rutt and published by him in a letter to The Monthly Repository for 1809, it then went missing until rediscovered at another auction in 2018.
We also have a couple of descriptions by Chatterton's sister, Mary ; one of which she related to W. H.Ireland and the other by letter to Sir Herbert Croft, both are a joy.
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Word Portraits of Famous Writers. Edited by Mabel E. Wotton, 1887 : View
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The question is, do any of the descriptions point to a specific image? Probably not, but I welcome the views of my readers.
The Infamous Dix 'Portrait' of Chatterton
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Click an image to see a close-up view
A rare postcard with Chatterton's 'Portrait.' The same image was used by Dix as a frontispiece in the first edition of his book, The Life of Thomas Chatterton.' The postcard has a space for a 1/2d stamp, which dates the card to around 1894 : View postal rates
The rear of the card has a transcript of a letter written by George Burge, which claims the portrait is of a boy named F. Morris, aged 13, the son of the Artist.
4. Thomas Chatterton?
John Eagles
When I first saw the portrait of John Eagles, above, I was struck by the similarities of his facial profile when compared to Chatterton's 'portrait' No. 4. A coincidence creeps in when you know that John Eagles' father, Thomas Eagles, was a friend of George Catcott.
A life size model in wax.
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Statue of Chatterton that stood outside St Mary Redcliffe
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Colston Boy . Bristol
Probably a copy of the original