Letter about the estate of Joseph Nollekens (1737-1823), generally considered to be the finest British sculptor of the late 18th c.

Single leaf (ca. 25,50 x 20 cm), on paper, in English, written on both sides.

In good condition (folds).

Nollekens, the son of the Flemish painter Josef Frans Nollekens (1702–1748) who had moved from Antwerp to London in 1733, studied in Rome from 1760 or 1762. On his return to London in 1770 he set up as a maker of busts and monuments, and became one of the most fashionable portrait sculptors in Britain. He enjoyed the patronage of King George III and went on to sculpt a number of British political figures, including George III himself. He died in London in 1823, having made a considerable fortune from his work. He left around £200,000 in his will.
The present letter, written by a solicitor, informs a client about the estate and the executors. Involved are i.a. Sir William Beechey (1753-1839), a leading English portraitist during the golden age of British painting (his portrait of Nollekens is in Tate Britain), Francis Russel Palmer, Revd. Thomas Kerrick, Edward Balme and the antiquary and collector Francis Douce (1757-1834). The latter received a bequest of £50,000, which enabled him to buy the finest printed books and manuscripts that came on to the market (which he left to the Bodleian Library).