Joseph Grego

[1] He was born in 1843, at 23 Granville Square, Clerkenwell, London, the elder son of Joseph Grego (1817–1881) and his wife Louisa Emelia Dawley.

Joseph Grego invented the 'Colour Photo-Copier', a system of reproducing 18th century colour prints in such exact facsimile that they have often been mistaken for originals.

[1896 Patent: No 2013: “Improvements in the Production of Zink or other Metal Blocks for Printing Purposes.”] Grego was also a Director and substantial shareholder of Kegan Paul & Co. from 1903 and The Graphic Company, until his death.

1897: Victorian Era Exhibition, foreword: “The history of Pickwick – The section undertaken by Mr. Joseph Grego is the fullest collection of Dickensiana ever gathered into one focus.

From 1897 to 1899 Joseph Grego was secretary of the Kernoozer's Club; (motto: Nostrum de armis quaerere,) a close and select little body of connoisseurs in Arms and Armour (“the armour-club par excellence in the world”) formed to promote ‘friendly intercourse between Gentlemen to study, collect and exhibit Ancient Armour and Arms.’[7] The words kernoozer or kernoozling are late 19th-century humorous travesties on connoisseur.

[8] The Kernoozers Club was founded in 1881 by its first president; Charles Alexander, Baron de Cosson, (from a family of French Revolution emigres) born in Durham 28 August 1846.

Being literary and artistic treasures unlikely to come onto the market – their value... inestimable – examples beyond price – unequalled in interest from a literary/historical point of view – scarce, costly and difficult to procure and impossible for an individual to secure a collection of...[9] Joseph Grego died unmarried on 24 January 1908, at the address where he was born and spent most of his life.

Although Grego was involved with photographic techniques throughout his life, with the exception of 87 19th century glass-negatives of Pickwickiana* in his estate, withheld from the 1897 VEE, there are no other surviving Grego-photographic records.

Albeit there are receipts for 'Photogravure plates produced by Joseph Grego for use by 'Chapman and Hall'- Dickens's publishers, and a rare life-photograph* of Hablot Knight Browne ('Phiz').