Lombardi & Co. - Brighton Studio
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Lombardi & Co. - Photographers in Brighton and London |
Antonio Martinucci (c1830-1880) - Eugenio Martinucci (1849-1920) - Robert Hatt (1843-1918) - Burt Sharp (1852-1913) |
Richard Webber (born 1867, Brighton) - Otto Pfenninger (born 1867, Switzerland) |
Antonio Martinucci and Eugenio Martinucci (Lombardi & Co.)
The Lombardi photographic studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton was opened around 1863. The Lombardi studio had been established by Antonio Martinucci (c1830-1880), an Italian professor of languages who had settled in Brighton ten years previously. Antonio Martinucci was later joined in the business by Eugenio Martinucci (1849-1920), a photographer who later became the senior partner in the firm of Lombardi & Co. of Brighton and London. Antonio Martinucci (c1830-1880) Antonio Martinucci, who was born either in Como or Chiavenna in Italy about 1830, arrived in Brighton around 1853. Early in 1854, Signor Antonio Martinucci was publicizing his services as a teacher of modern languages, literature and mathematics at an address in Brighton's King's Road. Between January and April 1854, Signor Martinucci was advertising in local newspapers as a "Professor of Modern Languages, Literature & Mathematics". W. J. Taylor's Original Directory of Brighton, which was compiled before June 1854, records Antonio Martinucci as a "Professor of Literature & Mathematics" at 14 King's Road, Brighton. Martinucci was operating from the business premises of Joseph Silvani, an Italian goldsmith and jeweller, whose shop spanned No. 13 and No.14 King's Road. Joseph Silvani (born c1800, Italy) might have been a friend or relative from the "old country" (Italy). Interestingly, Eugenio Martinucci later named one of his sons John Silvani Martinucci, possibly after John Silvani (born 1837, Brighton), the son of Joseph Silvani, the Italian jeweller. On 26th June 1856, at Hove, Sussex, Antonio Martinucci married Mrs Catherine Nichols Monro, a twenty-nine year old widow. Antonio's wife was born Catherine Nichols Field on 28th November 1827 in Kennington, Surrey, the daughter of Henry Field and Sophia Anne Hughes Hewitt. On 3rd September 1844, in Glasgow, Scotland, Catherine Nichols Field, then aged only sixteen, had married Alexander Donald Monro (1822-1849), a young Scotsman. This union produced three children - Donald Hugh Monro (born 1845, Wandsworth), Charles Edward Monro (born 1847, Wargrave, Berkshire - died 1891, Croydon) and Kenneth Monro (born 1848, Durley, Hants - died 1867, Brighton). Catherine's husband Alexander Donald Monro died at Nursling, Hampshire, on 27th April 1849 at the age of twenty-six. Mrs Catherine Nichols Monro was left as a young widow of twenty-one with three children under five years of age. Catherine, however, had inherited some property from her late husband. At the time of the 1851 census, the young widow and her three children were residing at a house in High Street, Bognor, Sussex. Mrs Catherine Monro is described on the census return as a "Proprietor of Houses". Around 1855, Mrs Monro was running a boarding house at 19 Waterloo Street, Hove. It was around this time that Mrs Catherine Monro made the acquaintance of Antonio Martinucci, a young Italian teacher in his mid-twenties. By 1856, Antonio and Catherine had married and Signor Martinucci had established himself as a "Professor of Languages" at 19 Waterloo Street, Hove, where he was based for the next four or five years. Antonio and Catherine Martinucci's first child was a son named Herbert Joseph Martinucci, who was born in Hove early in 1857. [The birth of Herbert Joseph Martinucci was registered in the Sussex district of Steyning during the First Quarter of 1857 ]. The couple's second child, a daughter named Augusta Maria Martinucci was born in Brighton at the beginning of 1861 and baptised at St Nicholas Church, Brighton a few days later on 6th January 1861. Antonio Martinucci had to wait another ten years for the arrival of his third child, a son named Cecil Oswald Martinucci, who was born in Hurstpierpoint, Sussex, during the 3rd Quarter of 1871. For a dozen years, Antonio Martinucci worked as a modern languages teacher in Brighton. Melville's Directory & Gazetteer of Sussex, published in 1858, lists Antonio Martinucci as a "professor of languages" at 19 Waterloo Street, Hove. Nine years later, Kelly's 1867 Directory of Sussex was still listing Antonio Martinucci as a "professor of languages", but with a new business address in New Steine, Brighton. When the 1861 census was taken, Antonio Martinucci was recorded at 163 North Street, Brighton, with his wife Catherine and their two young children - four year old Herbert and baby daughter Augusta. Antonio Martinucci is described on the census return as a "Professor of Languages", aged 29, and his place of birth is given as Como, Italy. Between 1862 and 1867, local commercial directories list Antonio Martinucci as a "Professor of Languages" at 23 New Steine, Brighton. Antonio Martinucci and the Lombardi Photographic Studio in Brighton Although he earned his living chiefly as a teacher of modern languages, Antonio Martinucci was interested in a wide range of subjects. When he first arrived in Brighton, Antonio Martinucci was offering to instruct his pupils in Mathematics and Literature, as well as Modern Languages. Martinucci was also an inventor. On 12th August 1858, together with John Scott of Shoreham, a Commander in the Mercantile Marine (Merchant Navy), he filed a patent for the invention of "an improved steam engine". Antonio Martinucci then became interested in the art and science of photography and around 1863 he established a photographic studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton under the name of Lombardi & Co. Antonio Martinucci continued to earn an income as a "professor of languages" under his own name and it appears that he adopted the name of "Antonio Lombardi" for his photographic activities. Page's General Directory for Brighton & Hove, published in 1864, lists "Lombardi & Co., photographers" at 113 King's Road and Signor Martinucci as a Professor of Languages at the same address. Antonio Martinucci's studio at 113 King's Road was established under the name of Lombardi & Co. For a brief time, "Antonio Lombardi " (Antonio Martinucci) was joined by a photographer named Fox and the photographic portraits produced at 113 King's Road carried the name "Lombardi & Fox". Signor Martinucci's business partner could have been Edward Fox junior (c1823-1899), who had been taking photographs of buildings in and around Brighton since 1851.The partnership of Lombardi & Fox was brief, probably lasting less than a year. Around 1865, Mr Fox was replaced by Mr Fry and for a few years the studio went under the name of Lombardi & Fry. It is possible that Martinucci's partner was one of the sons of Edmund Fry (1811-1866), a former bookseller and Quaker peace activist. Fry was the father of photographers Clarence Edmund Fry (1840-1897), Walter Henry Fry (born 1841), and Allen Hastings Fry (born 1847). I do not know which of the Fry brothers, if any, was Martinucci's business partner, but of the three, the most likely candidate is Walter Henry Fry. [ Allen Hastings Fry was employed by the firm of Hennah & Kent up until 1867 and in 1863, Clarence Edmund Fry had entered into a partnership with Joseph John Elliott (1835-1903) to form the famous London photography firm of Elliott & Fry ].
The business partnership between Antonio Martinucci and Mr Fry ended before 1870. ( In 1867 Walter Henry Fry established the firm of W. & A. H. Fry with his younger brother Allen Hastings Fry and opened a photographic studio at 68 East Street, Brighton). By 1870, Antonio Martinucci was exhibiting photographs under the name of "Antonio Lombardi". Mathieson's Brighton & Suburban Directory of 1870, lists Antonio Lombardi as an "artist & photographer" at 113 King's Road, Brighton. From 1871 until 1879, a photographer identified as Lombardi of Brighton showed photographs at the annual exhibitions of the Photographic Society of London (later known as the Royal Photographic Society). At the Sixteenth Annual Exhibition of 1871, Lombardi of Brighton was represented by a single portrait. The following year, Lombardi of Brighton exhibited three individual portraits, each one entitled "Portrait of a Lady". By 1879, Signor A. Lombardi was a member of the Photographic Society and at the Twenty-fourth Exhibition of the Photographic Society of Great Britain, "A. Lombardi" showed several photographs. Although one exhibit was described simply as an "Enlargement", all the other photographs were portraits and the sitters were mostly identified. Those portrayed included Charles Reade, Esq., Mr Biddulph, Samuel Holland Esq., Lady Gilford, and Mrs H. V. Macdonna.
Although it is accepted that Antonio Martinucci established the studio of Lombardi & Co. in Brighton around 1863, he does not give his occupation as "photographer" in the 1871 census. At the time of the 1871 census, Antonio Martinucci was residing with his pregnant wife Catherine and his daughter Augusta at his villa in Hurstpierpoint, a Sussex village less than ten miles from Brighton. Antonio Martinucci is recorded on the census return as a "Professor of Languages", aged 40. However, David Webb, who has made a comprehensive study of photographers active in London in Victorian times, lists Antonio Martinucci (1830-1880) as a photographer in the The Database of 19th Century Photographers and Allied Trades in London: 1841-1901 featured on the photoLondon website. Although Antonio Martinucci was the senior partner in the firm of Lombardi & Co., the census return recording the occupant of Lombardi & Co.'s premises at 113 King's Road, Brighton in 1871 indicates that the day-to-day work at the photographic studio was carried out by Eugenio Martinucci. The census enumerator has written an approximation of Eugenio Martinucci's name ( it appears as "Ugene Martinici") and has recorded him as a "Photographer", aged 22. In the 1870s, the proprietor of the photographic studio at 113 King's Road is referred to as "Signor Lombardi" and it is not clear whether the person referred to is Antonio Martinucci or Eugenio Martinucci. Antonio Martinucci became a Naturalised British Subject in April 1873 [ Nationality and Naturalisation Certificate A979 issued 16 April 1873 ]. After twenty years as a language teacher and a number of years as the proprietor of a fashionable photographic portrait studio, Antonio Martinucci died in Brighton in 1880 at the age of fifty. It seems that Antonio Martinucci was the driving force behind the Lombardi studio in the early years of its existence ( Eugenio was only 14 years of age when the Lombardi studio was established around 1863 ), but his involvement in the firm of Lombardi & Co. might have been primarily financial and although he appears to have been the original proprietor of the Lombardi studio, he probably employed the services of professional photographers at his King's Road studio. Given that Antonio Martinucci is generally recorded as a "Professor of Languages", rather than a "Photographer", he probably relied on the expertise of the professional photographers who joined him in his firm, such as Mr Fox and Mr Fry, for the day-to-day running of the studio in Brighton's King's Road. From around 1870, Antonio Martinucci could call upon Eugenio Martinucci (born 1849, Chiavenna, Italy) to operate the Lombardi photographic studio in Brighton. At the time of Antonio Martinucci's death in 1880, Eugenio Martinucci was the senior partner in the firm of Lombardi & Co. and was in charge of the Lombardi studio in London. |
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Carte-de-visite Portraits from the Lombardi Studio in Brighton (1864-1870) |
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[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a man seated in a chair holding a white pointer or conductor's baton, photographed at the studio of Lombardi & Co., 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1864) | [ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a seated woman and her son photographed at the studio of Lombardi & Fox, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1864) PHOTO: Courtesy of Ron Cosens | [ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a woman holding a book and standing by a table at the studio of Lombardi & Fry, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1865) | [ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a man standing by a table, photographed at the studio of Lombardi & Co., 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1869) |
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[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi & Co. of 113 King's Road, Brighton as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1864). |
[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi & Co., Artists & Photographers, of 113 King's Road, Brighton as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1864). |
[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi & Fry, Artists & Photographers, of 113 King's Road, Brighton as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1865). |
[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi Co., Artists & Photographers, of 113 King's Road, Brighton as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1870). |
Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (1870-1874)
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[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton, as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1870). | [ABOVE ] A vignette portrait of a bearded man, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1870) | [ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a young woman standing by a chair, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1870) | [ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a woman holding a book and framed by a window, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1870) |
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[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of a middle-aged man in an oval frame, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1872) |
[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of Cecil Frederick Holmes (1828-1887), Assistant Master of Harrow School, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1873) |
[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of an unknown woman in an oval frame, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1872) |
[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of an unknown young man in an oval frame, photographed at the studio of Lombardi, Artist & Photographer, 113 King's Road, Brighton (c1872) |
Eugenio Lombardi Martinucci (c1849-1920)
[ABOVE ] A portrait of Eugenio Martinucci (c1849-1920). This likeness was taken in the London studio of Lombardi & Co. around 1883, when Eugenio was in his early thirties. PHOTO: Courtesy of Heather Holford
[ABOVE ] A portrait of a young woman, probably photographed by Eugenio Martinucci during the time he was the sole proprietor of the Lombardi studio in Brighton. This carte-de-visite photograph was produced at the Lombardi studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton around 1872. As "Signor Lombardi", Martinucci showed similar portraits at the Annual Exhibitions of the Photographic Society of Great Britain held between 1871 and 1879.
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Eugenio Martinucci, was born
at Chiavenna in the Lombardia region of Northern Italy around 1849.
( Sometimes, Eugenio's full name is given as Eugenio Lombardi
Martinucci or Eugenio Martinucci Lombardi
). Although Antonio Martinucci is recorded as
a resident in the English seaside resort of Brighton in 1854 and is
registered in the English census of 1861, the date of Eugenio
Martinucci's arrival in England has not been noted. When the census of Brighton was carried out on 2nd April 1871, Eugenio Martinucci was recorded at the Lombardi studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton. Eugenio Martinucci ( wrongly entered as "Ugene Martinici" on the census return), is described on the census return as an unmarried man of twenty-two working as a "photographer". It appears that Eugenio had been recruited by Antonio Martinucci to operate the Lombardi photographic studio in Brighton's King's Road. Antonio Martinucci was possibly Eugenio Martinucci's father. When Eugenio Martinucci married in 1875, he declared that his father was "Antonio Martinucci, merchant ". Eugenio Martinucci and Lombardi & Co. of Brighton In early 1870s, Eugenio Martinucci was the chief photographer of the Lombardi studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton. Around 1875, the year of his marriage to Mary Alice Nye [see below for further details of Eugenio Martinucci's wife and family], Eugenio Martinucci joined forces with two other photographers - Robert Hatt (born c1843, Islington) and Burt Sharp (born 1851, Brighton) - to form the firm of Lombardi & Co. A second Lombardi studio was opened at 79 West Street, Brighton around 1875. By 1877, Eugenio Martinucci was taking a greater interest in the photographic publishing business he had developed with fellow Italian photographer Leonida Caldesi (1822-1891) at Caldesi's studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London. Under the name of Lombardi, Caldesi & Co., Eugenio Martinucci and Leonida Caldesi published photographic portraits of celebrities and photographic reproductions of works of art ( including exhibits at the British Museum and the Old Master paintings held by the National Gallery in London). Martinucci was also the proprietor of a "new portrait studio" at 13 Pall Mall East, which operated under the name of Lombardi & Co. In 1877, in order to be closer to his business interests in the capital, Martinucci moved to London with his family, leaving Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp in charge of the Lombardi studios in Brighton. In 1880, the partnership between Eugenio Martinucci and his two English associates came to an end. Martinucci, who was now residing with his wife and children in the St Pancras district of London, had decided to concentrate on his portrait studio and photographic publishing venture based at 13 Pall Mall East in the City of Westminster. In 1880 Martinucci dissolved his partnership with Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp and ended his active involvement with the Lombardi studios in Brighton. Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp remained business partners and continued running the studios at 113 King's Road and 79 West Street, Brighton under the name of Lombardi & Co.
Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp were the partners in the firm of Lombardi & Co. of Brighton from 1880 until 1883. Robert Hatt appears to have been in charge of the original Lombardi & Co. studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton, which specialised in studio portraits, while his partner Burt Sharp, who seemed to prefer "outdoor photography", was based at 79 West Street, Brighton.
Under the name of Lombardi,
Eugenio Martinucci became established as a society photographer in
London. Between 1871 and 1879, Eugenio Martinucci exhibited
regularly under the pseudonym of "Lombardi" at the annual
exhibitions in London organised by the Photographic Society. In
1878, "Signor Lombardi" (Eugenio Martinucci) became a Member of the
Photographic Society (later known as The Royal Photographic
Society).
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Lombardi & Co. of London & Brighton (1877-1880) |
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[ABOVE] An advertisement announcing Lombardi & Co.'s "new portrait
studio" at 13 Pall Mall East, London, which appeared in the
Brighton Herald in March 1877. This advertisement also
refers to Lombardi & Co''s two studios in Brighton - the studio
at 113 King's Road, which was established around 1864, and 79
West Street, which was opened around 1874.
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[ABOVE] A view of buildings on Brighton seafront near the Brighton Aquarium, a carte-de-visite published by Lombardi & Co. of Brighton around 1878. The firm of Lombardi & Co. had been appointed official photographers to the Brighton Aquarium not long after the attraction was opened in 1872. Views of the interior and exterior of the Brighton Aquarium were published by Lombardi & Co. in the larger cabinet format in March, 1874. Lombardi & Co. also exhibited seven views of the aquarium at the 19th Annual Exhibition of the Photographic Society of Great Britain held in London in 1874. |
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Lombardi & Co. of London & Brighton (1877-1880)
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[ABOVE] An 1882 advertisement for Lombardi & Co., Photographers and Miniature Painters of 79 West Street and 113 King's Road, Brighton, which appeared in the 1882 edition of Daniel B. Friend's Brighton Almanack. It appears that studio portraits were taken at the studio in King's Road, while larger group portraits and "Equestrian Studies" in the "extensive studio grounds" at 79 West Street. |
Lombardi & Co. of London
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Eugenio Martinucci and
Leonida Caldesi
In 1874, Eugenio Martinucci had joined the Italian photographer Leonida Caldesi (1822-1891) at Caldesi's studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London. Leonida Caldesi, who had been born in Florence, Italy, in 1822, had been a photographer in London since the mid-1850s and had opened his studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London on 1st May 1857. Shortly after establishing his business at 13 Pall Mall East, Leonida Caldesi was summoned to Queen Victoria's residence at Osborne on the Isle of Wight to make a series of photographs of her children. In June 1857, Caldesi visited Buckingham Palace to take photographic portraits of the Queen and her eldest daughter Victoria, the Princess Royal. From this date Caldesi could advertise that he was "Patronized by Her Majesty" and he soon became a fashionable portrait photographer. Among Caldesi's famous sitters were William Ewart Gladstone, a Liberal Party politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer and Prime Minister, Samuel Wilberforce, the Bishop of Oxford, William Makepeace Thackeray, the novelist, and Giuseppe Garibaldi, the popular Italian military leader. Leonida Caldesi's other speciality was producing photographic reproductions of works of art. Caldesi made photographs of the Raphael cartoons at Hampton Court, exhibits at the British Museum, paintings and drawings from the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace and pictures by Old Masters in London's National Gallery. Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. Eugenio Martinucci appears to have joined Caldesi's firm around 1874, as from this date the name of the business at 13 Pall Mall East changed from Caldesi & Co. to Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. From about 1874 until 1885, Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. operated as a commercial art and photographic firm publishing reproductions of famous works of art and re-issuing some of Leonida Caldesi's famous carte-de-visite portraits from the 1860s in a larger photographic format. It appears that Caldesi had returned to Italy (Leonida Caldesi died in Bologna, Italy, in 1891), but because of Caldesi's reputation as a photographer and his firm's connection with the Royal Family, Eugenio Martinucci's firm continued to be known as Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. until 1885. Caldesi's association with the studio at 13 Pall Mall East allowed Lombardi & Co. to print the Royal Arms and the words "Photographers to the Royal Family" on all the photographs produced at the studio. Eugenio Lombardi & Co., Photographers at 13 Pall Mall East, London From 1886, the photographic publishing firm at 13 Pall Mall East, London was known as Eugenio Lombardi & Co. From 1886 until 1893, Eugenio Martinucci issued Caldesi's portraits of famous people and celebrities in the larger cabinet format. For instance, a portrait of the British politician William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898), originally taken in the 1860s, was issued by Lombardi & Co. as a cabinet portrait in the 1890s. A cabinet portrait of the Italian patriot Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-1872) was published in the same series by Lombardi & Co. of 13 Pall Mall East, London, some twenty years after Mazzini's death. While publishing portraits of famous people originally photographed by Caldesi, Eugenio Martinucci continued to take studio portraits at his London studio in Pall Mall East. The portraits published by Eugenio Lombardi & Co. were registered at the Stationers' Company for copyright purposes. The registration forms submitted to the Stationers' Company provide details of the sitters and Eugenio Martinucci's claim of copyright ownership. The following list provides a sample of the photographic portraits published by Eugenio Lombardi & Co. in the 1880s :
Lombardi & Co. at 13 Pall Mall East, London In addition to the the celebrity portraits published by Eugenio Lombardi & Co., Eugenio Martinucci operated a conventional photographic portrait studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London, taking likenesses of ordinary members of the public. Although there is no evidence that Lombardi & Co. were ever granted a Royal Warrant during the reign of Queen Victoria, the carte-de-visite and cabinet portraits produced by the company between 1874 and 1893 carry the Royal Arms and the printed inscription " Photographers to the Royal Family". Martinucci probably inherited the claim of being a photographer to the Royal family from Leonida Caldesi's commissions from Queen Victoria which dated back to 1857. Eugenio Martinucci was quick to embrace new technology to advertise his photographic studio at 13 Pall Mall East. It is reported that the proprietor of Lombardi & Co. engaged Captain Ronald Augustus Scott of the Acton Electric Light and General Engineering Works to use his powerful searchlights to project advertisements for the studio onto the side of the building at 13 Pall Mall East. In the 1890s, a number of other photographers were working for Lombardi & Co. at the Pall Mall East studio. A copyright registration form submitted to the Stationers' Company in February 1894 gives the "Copyright owner and author of work" as "Madeline Strutt, trading as Lombardi & Co, 13 Pall Mall East, London". Madeline Strutt (born c1859, Hobart, Tasmania) was the daughter of Major Charles H. Strutt of Dedham, Essex. The photographer James Percy Talbot Notcutt (1862-1916) was the Managing Director of Lombardi & Co. between 1892 and 1895. |
The Lombardi Studios in Brighton and London : The studios of Lombardi (Martinucci), Lombardi & Co, Lombardi et al |
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BRIGHTON |
NOTES |
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NAME OF STUDIO |
STUDIO ADDRESS |
DATES ACTIVE |
PROPRIETOR / PHOTOGRAPHER |
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Lombardi & Co | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
1863-1864 |
Antonio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi & Fox | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
c1864 |
Antonio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi & Fry | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
1865-1869 |
Antonio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
1870-1874 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi & Co. | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
1874-1880 |
Eugenio Martinucci, Robert Hatt & Burt Sharp | ||
79 West Street, Brighton. |
1875-1880 |
Eugenio Martinucci, Robert Hatt & Burt Sharp | |||
Lombardi & Co. (Brighton) | 113 King's Road, Brighton |
1880-1883 |
Robert Hatt & Burt Sharp | ||
79 West Street, Brighton |
1880-1883 |
Robert Hatt & Burt Sharp | |||
(52 Clarence Square, Brighton) |
1880-1883 |
Robert Hatt & Burt Sharp | Frank Hayes / Gertrude A. White / William A. White | Sophia Hemmings, listed as a "Photographer's Assistant" at 51 Clarence Square in 1881 | |
Lombardi & Co. (Brighton) | 52 Clarence Square, Brighton |
1884-1885 |
Robert Hatt | ||
Burt Sharp | 79 West Street, Brighton. |
1883-1894 |
Burt Sharp | ||
Lombardi & Co. | 79 West Street, Brighton |
1895-1897 |
Richard Webber ( & Eugenio Martinucci ?) | ||
Lombardi & Co. (O. P. Suisse) | 79 West Street, Brighton |
1898-1903 |
Otto Pfenninger ( & Eugenio Martinucci ?) | ||
LONDON |
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NAME OF STUDIO |
STUDIO ADDRESS |
DATES ACTIVE |
PROPRIETOR |
PHOTOGRAPHERS | |
Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. | 13 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. |
1875-1885 |
Eugenio Martinucci & Leonida Caldesi, | ||
Lombardi & Co. | 13 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. |
1874-1885 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Eugenio Lombardi & Co. | 13 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. |
1886-1893 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi & Co. | 13 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. |
1894 |
Eugenio Martinucci | Madeline Strutt | |
Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. | 13 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. |
1895-1897 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Eugenio Lombardi | 27 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge |
1897-1898 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. | 27 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge |
1899-1900 |
Eugenio Martinucci | ||
Lombardi, Weston & Son | 27 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge |
1900-1904 |
Eugenio Martinucci & John Weston | William Gordon Henley | |
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The Family of Eugenio Martinucci |
[ABOVE] A group portrait of Eugenio Martinucci and his family, photographed at Lombardi's London studio around 1883. Sitting in front of Eugenio Martinucci is his wife Alice Mary Martinucci (nee Nye). Leaning on Alice's lap are her twin sons Antonio Lombardi Martinucci and John Silvani Martinucci, who were born in London St Pancras during the 4th Quarter 1877. Standing to the right of his parents is William Eugenio Martinucci (born 1876, Brighton), the eldest child of Eugenio and Alice Martinucci. PHOTO: Courtesy of Heather Holford
[ABOVE] Details from the marriage certificate recording the marriage of Eugenio Martinucci and Mary Alice Nye on 6th February 1875 at Hurstpierpoint, Sussex. Eugenio's father is given as Antonio Martinucci, merchant. Was this the same Antonio Martinucci who was a Professor of Languages in Brighton in the 1850s and founded the Lombardi Studio around 1863 ? |
On 6th February 1875, the
Italian-born Brighton photographer Eugenio Martinucci married
Mary Alice Nye at Hurstpierpoint, Sussex. Mary Alice Nye
(born 1852, Brighton) was the daughter of Mary Ann Silverthorne
and William Nye (1811-1885), a job master and livery stable
keeper. ( Mary Alice Nye was generally known as "Alice" to
distinguish her from her mother Mrs Mary Nye). Born in Brighton in 1811, William Nye had married Mary Ann Silverthorne (born c1820, Brighton) on 22nd March 1836. Between 1866 and 1878, William Nye had run a series of livery stables in Brighton. Sometime after 1866, William Nye had moved out to the village of Hurstpierpoint with his wife Mary Ann and his three youngest daughters, Alice (born 1852), Gertrude (born 1855) and Katie (born c1858). At the time of the 1871 census, William Nye and his family were residing at Warwick House, Hurstpierpoint. Also living in Hurstpierpoint in the early 1870s was Antonio Martinucci and his family. Eugenio Martinucci was probably introduced to Alice Nye around this time. Eugenio and Alice Martinucci's first child, a son named William Eugenio Nye Martinucci was born in Brighton during the First Quarter of 1876. At this time Eugenio Martinucci was in partnership with two photographers - Robert Hatt (born c1843, Islington) and Burt Sharp (born 1851, Brighton). In the early 1870s, Eugenio Martinucci was the main photographer at the Lombardi studio. Antonio Martinucci probably still had a stake in the business, but Eugenio was effectively in charge of the studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton. Around 1874, Eugenio Martinucci had opened a second studio at 79 West Street, Brighton. Eugenio Martinucci was now obliged to bring photographers Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp into the business to manage the two Lombardi studios in Brighton. In the early 1870s, photographs from Martinucci's studio in the King's Road carry the trade plate of "Lombardi, artist & photographer", but around 1874, with the addition of Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp, the name of the firm became once again "Lombardi & Co, artists & photographers", in the plural. In 1877, Eugenio Martinucci joined fellow Italian photographer Leonida Caldesi (1822-1891) at Caldesi's studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London. Leaving Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp in charge of Lombardi & Co.'s studios in Brighton (113 King's Road & 79 West Street, Brighton), Eugenio Martinucci moved to London with Alice and baby William. Eugenio Martinucci and his family settled in the St Pancras area of London. Towards the end of 1877, Alice Martinucci gave birth to twin boys - Antonio Lombardi Nye Martinucci and John Silvani Nye Martinucci [ the births of Antonio and John Silvani Martinucci were registered in the London district of St Pancras during the 4th Quarter of 1877 ]. When the census was taken on 3rd April 1881, Eugenio Martinucci and his family were residing at 60 Lady Somerset Road, St Pancras, London. Eugenio Martinucci is entered on the census return as a "Photographic Artist", aged 31. Also recorded at the house in Lady Somerset Road is Eugenio's twenty-seven year old wife Alice, their three-year old twin boys and Alice's nephew Edward Albert Nye (born 1864, Brighton), who is described as a "Photographic Operator", aged 17. [ Eugenio and Alice's eldest boy, five year old William Eugenio Martinucci, then known as Eugene, was staying with his grandparents William and Mary Ann Nye at Warwick House, Hurstpierpoint ]. Ten years later, Eugenio Martinucci and his family were back in Brighton. The 1891 census records Eugenio Martinucci as a self-employed photographer ("neither employer nor employed"), living with his wife and three sons - William, aged 15, and thirteen year old twins Antonio and John - at 5 Eastern Quadrant, Brighton. The forty-two year old photographer still had a financial interest in the London firm of Eugenio Martinucci & Co., but the day-to-day running of the the business was in the hands of company's managing director James Percy Talbot Notcutt (1862-1916). When James Notcutt left Lombardi & Co. to pursue a new career in music as a concert promoter, Eugenio Martinucci returned to London. The firm of Eugenio Lombardi & Co was wound up on 16th December 1893 and a new company called Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. was set up at 13 Pall Mall East. Eugenio Martinucci had been operating a second studio under his own name at 27 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge, but by around 1898, this studio was also under the control of Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. Around 1901, Martinucci formed a new partnership with London photographer John Walter Weston (1857-1936). From 1901 to 1904, the studio at 27 Sloane Street, Knightsbridge carried the name of Lombardi, Weston & Son. |
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The Lombardi Studios in Brighton after 1877 |
[ABOVE ] The trade plate of Lombardi & Co. Photographers to the Royal Family, 79 West Street & 113 King's Road, Brighton and at 13 & 14 Pall Mall East, London, S.W. as printed on the reverse of carte-de-visite portrait (c1877).
[ABOVE] A newspaper advertisement for the Brighton studio of Burt Sharp, "Formerly Partner in the firm of LOMBARDI and Co." This advertisement appeared in the Brighton Herald on 10th April 1886. Burt Sharp had acquired the former Lombardi studio at 79 West Street in 1883. This newspaper advertisement points out that Burt Sharp had taken possession of all the photographic negatives taken by Lombardi & Co. of 113 King's Road, Brighton.
[ABOVE] An advertisement for Burt Sharp, Photographer & Artist of of 79 West Street, Brighton, which appeared in the 1886 edition of Daniel B. Friend's Brighton Almanack. Burt Sharp, who was a former business partner of Eugenio Martinucci and one of the proprietors of the Lombardi studios in Brighton in the early 1880s, took over the former Lombardi studio at 79 West Street in 1883. As this advertisement shows, Burt Sharp retained all the negatives taken by Signor Lombardi since the West Street studio was first opened in 1874.
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[ABOVE] An advertisement for Messrs. Lombardi & Co.'s two Brighton studios which appeared in the Brighton Examiner newspaper on 11th January 1881. Eugenio Martinucci had left Brighton for London in 1877 and three years later he passed the Brighton studios to his former partners, Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp. The studio at 113 King's Road, which had been established around 1863, appears to have been managed by Robert Hatt, and the new studio at 79 West Street, which opened its doors about 1874, became the responsibility of Burt Sharp. Around 1874, Eugenio Martinucci entered into a business partnership with two English photographers, Robert Hatt (born c1843, Islington, London) and Burt Sharp (born 1851, Brighton). Consequently, the studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton changed its name from Lombardi to Lombardi & Co. About this time, Lombardi & Co opened a second studio at 79 West Street, Brighton. When in 1877 Eugenio Martinucci moved to London to join Italian photographer Leonida Caldesi (1822-1891) at Caldesi's studio at 13 Pall Mall East, London, he left the two Brighton studios in the hands of his two partners Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp. Robert Hatt (1843-1918) had previously run his own studio in the New Cross area of London, and it appears that he took charge of the original Lombardi studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton. The new studio at 79 West Street, Brighton probably became the responsibility of the less experienced photographer Burt Sharp, who was then in his mid twenties. Burt Sharp (1852-1913) was the son of Mary and David Sharp, a Brightonian who had previously worked in the woollen trade and let out furnished apartments in Brighton. In 1880, Eugenio Martinucci, who had settled in London with his wife and family, dissolved his partnership with Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp. Martinucci had decided to give up his studios in Brighton and concentrate on his photographic publishing business at 13 Pall Mall East, London. The Lombardi studios in Brighton passed into the hands of Martinucci's former partners Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp, who retained the firm's name of Lombardi & Co.
At the time of the 1881 census, both Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp were residing in the village of Preston on the outskirts of Brighton. Robert Hatt, who is entered on the census return as a thirty-seven year old "Photographic Artist", was living at Preston Farm Cottage, South Road, Preston, with his wife Elizabeth and their five year old son, Robert Aspland Hatt, who had been born in Brighton in 1876. Sharing Robert Hatt's home was his twenty-four year old niece Gertrude White, described as a "Photo Retoucher" and presumably employed at the Lombardi & Co. studio in King's Road, Brighton. Burt Sharp, an unmarried man of twenty-nine, who gave his occupation as "Photographer", was living with his parents and three siblings at the family home of "Cherrington" in Clermont Terrace, Preston. Burt's father David Sharp, the Head of Household, is described as a "Superannuated Woollen Buyer", aged 62. On 1st January 1884, the partnership between Robert Hatt and Burt Sharp ( trading as Lombardi & Co., Brighton) was dissolved. The long established Lombardi studio at 113 King's Road, Brighton closed in 1884. ( When the building at 113 King's Road was occupied by the Institution for Trained Nurses in 1885, it retained the name of "Lombardi House" ). For a brief period between 1884 and 1885, Robert Hatt continued as a photographer at 52 Clarence Square, Brighton using the trading name of "Lombardi & Co." The second Lombardi studio at 79 West Street, Brighton was was operated by Burt Sharp under his own name. Between 1884 and 1886, Burt Sharp placed advertisements in the press to inform the public that he was now the proprietor of the studio at 79 West Street and had taken possession of all the photographic negatives of Lombardi & Co. of Brighton. In an advertisement placed in the 1886 edition of Daniel B. Friend's Brighton Almanack, Burt Sharp publicized his studio at 79 West Street, Brighton and announced that he now held all the negatives previously taken by Lombardi & Co. at the West Street studio, including "those taken by Signor Lombardi (Eugenio Martinucci)".
After the final dissolution of the Brighton firm of Lombardi & Co. in 1885, Robert Hatt went to work for his former business partner Eugenio Lombardi at the firm of Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. at 13 Pall Mall East, London. (According to David Webb, the London photo historian, the firm of Lombardi, Caldesi & Co. was primarily involved in photographic publishing, but there is evidence to show that standard studio portraits were also taken at the Pall Mall East studio). Burt Sharp operated his studio at 79 West Street, Brighton until the end of 1894. However, shortly after Burt Sharp vacated the studio at 79 West Street, it was once again operating under the name of Lombardi & Co. It appears that Eugenio Martinucci had entered into a business partnership with Brighton photographer Richard Webber (born 1867, Brighton) and had restored the studio name of Lombardi & Co. From 1895 until 1897, served as a partner in the firm of Lombardi & Co. and managed the Lombardi Studio in West Street. Richard Webber ended his association with Lombardi & Co. when he established his own studio at 23 Ship Street, Brighton, around 1897. Webber's position as chief photographer for Lombardi & Co. at 79 West Street, Brighton was filled by Otto Pfenninger (born 1867, Switzerland). Towner's Brighton and Suburban Directory of 1898, lists the proprietor of the studio at 79 West Street as LOMBARDI & Co. (O. P. Suisse). The signature of "O. P. Suisse" also appears on the carte-de-visite portraits produced at the Brighton studio of Lombardi & Co. between 1898 and 1903. The pseudonym of "O. P. Suisse" is not difficult to unravel - the initials "O. P." represent Otto Pfenninger and the surname "Suisse" indicates the photographer's nationality. Towner's Brighton Directory listed "O. P. Suisse" (Otto Pfenninger) at Lombardi & Co.'s premises in West Street until 1903. By the time the 1904 edition of Towner's Brighton and Suburban Directory appeared, the Lombardi & Co. photographic studio at 79 West Street, Brighton had closed. |
Members of The Martinucci Family |
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To view a selection of photographs taken at the Lombardi Studios in Brighton and London between 1863 and 1880, click on the link below : |
Lombardi & Co. of Brighton and London : Gallery of Photographs |
Acknowledgements and Sources |
Thanks to Heather Holford
for providing the Martinucci family photograph and material on
Eugenio Martinucci and his wife Alice Mary Nye. Heather Holford is a
descendant of the Nye family of Brighton and Hurstpierpoint. Alice
Mary Nye, Eugenio Martinucci's wife, is Heather's great aunt. Thanks to
Dennis William Dollimore
for providing information on the Martinucci family. Dennis Dollimore
is the
grandson of William Eugenio Martinucci, the eldest son of
Eugenio and Alice Martinucci.
Thanks to
Kenneth Alfred Martin and his
wife Lorraine Martin
for providing photographs and further information on the Martinucci
(Martin) family. Kenneth Martin
is the grandson of
John Silvani Martinucci - a.k.a. Martin (born 1877, St
Pancras, London). Thanks to Michael Omilon
of Canada who provided the date of Eugenio Martinucci's death
in Canada. Thanks also to Bruce Taylor
of Airdrie, Alberta, for providing information about Eugenio
Martinucci's years in Winnipeg and for advising me about George
Gordon Nye's photographic career in Canada. Bruce
Taylor's grandmother was
Elley
Mary Martinucci, the daughter of John Silvani Martinucci and
Elley
McMillan. Thanks to Ron Cosens for providing the photograph taken by Lombardi & Fox. Ron Cosens is the author of two websites devoted to Victorian Photographers and the Carte-de-visite Photograph ( see links below). I am grateful to photoLondon for providing The Database of 19th Century Photographers and Allied Trades in London: 1841-1901 (based on the research of David Webb) which is featured on the photoLondon website. Thanks also to Zoe Lubowiecka of Hove Reference Library for her help and assistance. Thanks to Nicky Gunn of Guildford for drawing my attention to the use made by Robert Hatt and Lombardi & Co. of the auxiliary studio at 52 Clarence Square, Brighton. Nicky Gunn is descended from the photographer Frederick Hatt, a brother of Robert Hatt, one of the partners in Lombardi & Co.
Information about William Martinucci's criminal activities was found
on The Old Bailey
website ( http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/ ) SOURCES : Census returns : 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891, 1901 [Brighton / Hurstpierpoint / London]; Brighton and Sussex Trade Directories : 1854 (Taylor), 1855 (Kelly), 1856 (Folthorp), 1858 (Melville), 1859 (Folthorp), 1862 (Folthorp / Kelly), 1864 (Folthorp / Page,), 1865 (Simpson), 1866, 1867 (Kelly)................................1878 (Kelly) ; 1896 (Pike) ;1897 (Kelly, Pike, Buff Book); 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1903,( Pike, Kelly) ; 1904 (Pike, Bennett); 1905, 1906, 1907,1908, 1909, 1910 (Kelly, Pike); 1911 (Kelly); 1915, 1918, 1922, 1924, 1927, 1930 (Kelly).
Books : "Chronological index of patents applied for
and patents granted and index of applicants for patents of
invention" by B. Woodcroft (Patent Office, 1859)
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