Henry Thomas Alken (1785–1851) was best known as a caricaturist and illustrator of sporting subjects. He was the most distinguished member of an artistic dynasty; his father, Samuel Alken, was an architect and engraver, two of his brothers were artists, and also two of his sons. He studied under his father from a young age and also was apprenticed to the miniaturist John Thomas Barber. In 1809 he married Maria Gordon in Ipswich, Suffolk, and may have lived there for some years. A keen huntsman himself, also seems to have mixed with the notorious hunting set of Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire – and it has been suggested that he lived there, and worked as a horse breeder. His earliest sporting prints were signed ‘Ben Tally Ho’.
Moving to London, the 1820s saw Alken at the height of his skill and success. He produced many prints and illustrated numerous books, often with sporting and / or comic subjects, including The National Sports of Great Britain (1821), Real Life in London (1821-22), A Touch at the Fine Arts (1824) and Sporting Scrap Book (1824).
His work is represented in many public collections, including the British Museum and the V&A.
