Alexander Browne and Richard Tompson

Thomas Thynne
published by Alexander Browne, after Sir Peter Lely
circa 1684
NPG D11437

8 November 2003 - 12 April 2004
Room 16

Political unrest in seventeenth century England coincided with a surge in print publishing. Images were needed for news and propaganda and there was also demand from a growing number of collectors. Seizing on this, the publishers Alexander Browne and Richard Tompson issued high quality prints in the new technique of mezzotint. The display uses magnificent impressions normally stored in the Gallery's Reference Collection to illustrate the range and development of the mezzotint process as it flourished in London during the 1680s.

Related website feature
The early history of mezzotint and the prints of
Richard Tompson and Alexander Browne