Henry Philip Hope
Portrait painting of a middle aged man
Painting by Thomas Goff Lupton After Bouton
Born(1774-06-08)June 8, 1774
Amsterdam
DiedDecember 5, 1839(1839-12-05) (aged 65)
Kent, United Kingdom
NationalityDutch
OrganizationSociety of Dilettanti
Parents
  • Jan Hope (father)
  • Philippina Barbara van der Hoeven (mother)
Relatives

Henry Philip Hope (8 June 1774, Amsterdam – 5 December 1839, Kent) was a collector of Dutch origin based in London. He was one of the heirs of the bank Hope & Co. without having been a banker himself but rather a famous collector of the arts and more particularly precious gems.

Origins

He was the son of Jan Hope and Philippina Barbara van der Hoeven and the youngest brother of Thomas Hope and Adrian Elias Hope.[1]

He inherited a grand home on Duchess Street, Cavendish Square, London, that he kept from when his father died in 1831 until he sold it for demolition in 1851.[2]

Collector

Henry Philip Hope, (Henry Bone, after Head)

He was a prominent collector of gems, including the Hope Diamond (a blue diamond of 45.52 carats (9.104 g)) and a large pearl of 1,800 grains (or 90 g)[3] which still bear the name of Hope. The catalogue of his collection was published by Bram Hertz shortly after his death. Hope also had an extensive library, some of which was sold by auction in his lifetime by Leigh & Sotheby in London on 18 February 1813 (& 17 following days), including 3639 lots of books and manuscripts. A copy of the catalogue is held at Cambridge University Library, shelfmark Munby.c.159(5).

The conditions for the acquisition of the blue diamond remain uncertain. The archives found at the National Museum of Natural History leave no room for certainty. It may be possible that Henry Philip Hope acquired the French blue diamond after his flight in 1792. Records reveal that Henry Philip Hope also bought a 137-carat sapphire that had previously belonged to the Ruspoli family of Rome which was confused until 2013 with Louis XIV's "Grand Saphir". The Grand was of comparable weight, but has different facets (rhomboid instead of cushion).

Inheritance

When his brother, Adrian Elias Hope, died in 1834 with no wife or children, he inherited £500,000 (or £51,125,900 in 2024 currency).[4]

In his book on precious stones, the French mineralogist René Just Haüy cites Henry Philip Hope as one of the most distinguished patrons of the arts of his time. When he died in 1839, his collection was viewed as "...one of most perfect collections of diamonds and precious stones that has, perhaps, ever been possessed by a private individual..."[4]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Henry Philip Hope.

Bibliography

Notes
  1. ↑ Sutton, Bikker & Bruce Museum of Arts and Science 2006, p. 116.
  2. ↑ Watkin, David. "Thomas Hope's house in Duchess Street: the interiors created by Hope to display works of art in his London house were some of the most influential of the Regency age. A fuller story of their evolution can now be told, following the discovery of drawings by Robert Adam and C. H. Tatham." Apollo, vol. 159, no. 505, Mar. 2004, pp. 31+. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A114477247/AONE?u=googlescholar&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=54d5b62e. Accessed 11 Oct. 2022.
  3. ↑ Matlins 2001, pp. 16–17.
  4. 1 2 Kurin 2017.
References
  • Sutton, Peter C.; Bikker, Jonathan; Bruce Museum of Arts and Science (2006). Jan van der Heyden. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300119701. - Total pages: 250
  • Kurin, Richard (2017). Hope Diamond: The Legendary History of a Cursed Gem. Smithsonian Institution. ISBN 9781588344199. - Total pages: 400
  • Matlins, Antoinette L. (2001). The Pearl Book: The Definitive Buying Guide - How to Select, Buy, Care for and Enjoy Pearls. Gemstone Press. ISBN 9780943763354. - Total pages: 198
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