NEWS RELEASES
Horsham's Renaissance Man
30th May 2007
In every generation there are some remarkable people who can seemingly turn their hand to anything and make it successful; in the 1960s to ‘90s Jonathan Miller was seen as one such man – a doctor, satirist, author, opera director, and much more besides. Those individuals blessed with this remarkable versatility have often been known by the term ‘Renaissance man.’ It was during the Victorian age that one such man lived in the ancient market town of Horsham. Now, for the first time, Horsham Museum is celebrating Thomas Honywood’s remarkable achievements.
Thomas Honywood was born in 1819, four years after the Battle of Waterloo, and died a year after Queen Victoria celebrated her Golden Jubilee in 1888. The list of his achievements is astounding. He:
- Is said to have brought photography to Horsham by 1850, providing the town with the first true images of itself and only 12 years after Fox Talbot’s invention
- Drew the detailed sketches of Horsham Gaol before it was pulled down in 1845, thus showing the world the only images of the revolutionary gaol built in Horsham in the 18th century
- Is credited with identifying the Mesolithic or Middle Stone age period and thus created a whole new branch of archaeological study and interest, and this at a time when scientists were still debating if the Bible was right or not
- Discovered and preserved the Horsham Hoard of medieval pottery, pottery that inspired Victorian souvenir makers
- Invented a new and unique photographic process for nature printing that won awards at exhibition of inventions: A process that captured in positive images ice crystals, cobwebs, and leaf structures that were printed on card and textiles alike
- Set up his own museum for public education years before Horsham Museum was even thought of
- Was also an entrepreneur who re-developed property in the town
However for the Victorian town-folk of Horsham his real fame came not from this work but for running one of the best voluntary fire brigades in Sussex. Such was his popularity that town gave him a magnificent portrait.
Horsham Museum is fortunate that when his widow and son died many of Thomas’s items ended up in its collections. So visitors to Horsham Museum’s new exhibition Nature Printing: The Natural World Exposed can see his remarkable sketches of the gaol, marvel at his early photographs of the town as well as his staged portrait scenes that are almost theatrical in intent. Wonder along with many others at how he managed to capture the delicacy of nature through the photographic process onto textiles and card and admire the magnificent portrait of a true Victorian renaissance man.
Nature Printing: The Natural World Exposed opens on 12th June 2007 and runs until 15th September 2007.
For further information please contact Jeremy Knight, Curator.
Horsham Museum
9 Causeway
Horsham
West Sussex
RH12 1HE
Tel 01403 254959
e-mail museum@horsham.gov.uk
website http://www.horshammuseum.org/