Thomas Ryder (engraver)

Thomas Ryder (1746–1810), engraver, was a pupil of James Basire, and during his apprenticeship established drawings with the Society of Artists in 1766 and 1767.

Ryder engraved a few plates in the line manner, of which the most important are "The Politician" (a portrait of Benjamin Franklin), after S. Elmer, 1782; and "Vortigern and Rowena", after A. Kauffman, 1802; but he is best known by his works in stipple, which are among the finest of their class.

These include "The Last Supper", after Benjamin West; "The Murder of James I of Scotland", after Opie; "Prudence and Beauty", after A. Kauffman; nine of the plates to the large edition of Boydell's "Shakspeare"; and others from designs by Bigg, Bunbury, Cipriani, Cosway, Ryley, and Shelley.

Ryder also engraved portraits of Mrs. Damer, after Kauffman; Henry Bunbury, after Lawrence; Sir William Watson, M.D., after Abbot; and Maria Linley, after Westall.

He had a son of the same Christian name who was also an engraver, and together they executed the whole-length portrait of Queen Charlotte, after Beechey, prefixed to the second volume of Boydell's ‘Shakspeare.’ This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Ryder, Thomas (1746-1810)".