William Finden
(1787-1852), EngraverArtist associated with 33 portraits
Apprenticed to James Mitan, after which he found employment engraving illustrations for books. His younger brother, Edward Finden, worked with him. Their work became so much in demand that they employed a company of assistants, who also produced their plates. Finden's largest plate was a portrait of King George IV after the painting by Sir Thomas Lawrence; he received two thousand guineas for this work, the highest sum ever paid for an engraved portrait. He and his brother undertook the publication as well as the production of engravings. The first and most successful of these was a series of illustrations to the life and works of Byron, which appeared from 1833.
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