Arthur Tooth & Sons

Biographical/Historical Note

Arthur Tooth, the son of a framer, made his fortune selling etchings to wealthy Victorian patrons. Arthur Tooth & Sons was founded in London, in 1842, with galleries in Haymarket. In its first years, the firm dealt primarily in 18th and early 19th- century British paintings and drawings. After circa 1880, contemporary paintings and occasional old masters were increasingly added to stock. Other works of art and artefacts, such as china, furniture, and books, begin to be listed in the stock inventories after 1892. In the early 1900s, the firm opened a subsidiary branch in New York and closed it in 1924.