Carpenter was born in Bruton Street, London on 2 March 1792.

He was the son of James Carpenter, a bookseller in Old Bond Street.

He tried painting and publishing but eventually found employment as the Keeper of Prints at the British Museum.

He purchased a number of notable drawings including some by Michelangelo and Raphael.

Carpenter died at the British Museum[1] in July 1866 and was buried with his wife Margaret (d.1872) and daughter, Henrietta (d.1895), on the western side of Highgate Cemetery.