Lives of Gainsborough

Philip Thicknesse, one of the most eccentric figures of the eighteenth century (he directed that after his death his hand
should be chopped off and sent to his son as a reminder of the filial duties the son had scanted) was a close friend and
shrewd observer of the painter whom he claimed to have discovered.
William Jackson, a distinguished musician and connoisseur, also claimed to have been the first to see Gainsborough's
talent, but after falling out with the painter over his reckless lifestyle, wrote an affectionate but clear eyed memoir.