William Hookham Carpenter


William Hookham Carpenter was a British Keeper of Prints at the British Museum.

Biography

Carpenter was born in Bruton Street, London on 2 March 1792. He was the son of James Carpenter, a bookseller in Old Bond Street. In 1817 Carpenter married Margaret Sarah Geddes who was a noted portrait-painter, as Margaret Sarah Carpenter. He tried painting and publishing but eventually found employment as the Keeper of Prints at the British Museum. He purchased a number of notable drawings including some by Michelangelo and Raphael. Carpenter died at the British Museum.
William and Margaret's children included two noted painters, another William and Percy Carpenter who both travelled.