Sir George Scharf As an Emerging Professional Within the Nineteenth-Century Museum World
A man of ‘unflagging zeal and industry’: Sir George Scharf as an emerging professional within the nineteenth-century museum world Elizabeth Heath Figure 1: Sir George Scharf, by Walter William Ouless, oil on canvas, 1885, NPG 985. © National Portrait Gallery, London Sir George Scharf was appointed first secretary of the newly established National Portrait Gallery early in 1857, becoming director in 1882 and retiring shortly before his death, in 1895 (fig. 1). Applied by the Gallery’s Board of Trustees when formally recording this event in their annual report, the phrase quoted in the title indicates the strength of Scharf’s commitment to his duties over the course of a career that spanned five decades.1 As custodian of the national portraits, Scharf’s remit encompassed every aspect of Gallery activity. Whilst he held responsibility for the display, interpretation and conservation of the collection in its earliest days, he also 1 Lionel Cust, 12 Sep. 1895, NPG Report of the Trustees 1895, 4, Heinz Archive and Library, NPG. Journal of Art Historiography Number 18 June 2018 Elizabeth Heath Sir George Scharf as an emerging professional within the nineteenth-century museum world devoted a significant amount of time to research into the portraits.2 To this end, Scharf oversaw the establishment of an on-site research library of engraved portraits, periodicals, books and documents. Coupled with his meticulous investigations into works in private and public collections across Britain, this served as a vital resource for authenticating potential portrait acquisitions. In recording what he saw by means of densely annotated sketches and tracings, Scharf developed a procedure for the documentation, identification and authentication of portraiture, which continues to inform the research practice of the Institution.
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