Matthew Noble - Biography

1818-1876. The portrait sculptor Matthew Noble was born near Scarborough, but went as a young man to London, where he studied under John Francis (the father of Mary Thornycroft, the sculptress). He exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy from 1845 until his death, one of his first busts being that of the Bishop of York. He became recognised after winning the competition to build the Wellington Monument in Manchester in 1856. Also important are his colossal marble Statue of the Prince Consort for Thomas Worthington’s Albert Memorial, Manchester (1865) and his bronze statue Oliver Cromwell (Liverpool, 1875). Copeland’s copied some of his works in miniature for production in Parian ware. Never in robustly good health, he died rather young, and his assistant J. Edwards completed his unfinished works. Noble’s sculptures in London include Franklin in Waterloo Place (1856), Lord Derby (1874) and Sir Robert Peel (1876) in Parliament Square, and Sir James Outram on the Embankment (1871). Sources: Cavanagh, T., Public Sculpture of Liverpool, Liverpool, 1997, p.334; Gunnis, R., Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660--1851, London, 1964, p.274f.; Read, B., Victorian Sculpture, New Haven and London, 1982, pp.112--13, 150--1, 167, 355; Speel, B., Sculpture on Bob Speel’s Website, 1999, www.speel.demon.co.uk/other/sculpt.htm [SBC2005]

The works of Matthew Noble: