John Disney (antiquarian)

Disney was educated at home in London until the age of 16, when he went to Peterhouse, Cambridge.

Disney left the post of Recorder at Bridport in 1823, and at some later point afterwards moved to Essex.

It was further enlarged by gifts from Charles Callis Western and James Christie.

The value of the collection has been debated, with Adolf Michaelis in the 19th century finding fault with the quality ("trash rather than treasure"), and Disney's expertise in the area.

It included input from Taylor Combe, John Flaxman and Richard Westmacott.

[1][3] Disney presented most of the sculptures in his collection to the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge in 1850.

[1] What remained of the collection at The Hyde was sold by Christie's auction house in the years after Edgar Disney, the heir, died in 1881.