Frank Cundall FSA, FRHS,

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

, (17 January 1858 – 15 November 1937) was an English art historian, editor and author, the son of the writer and publisher

Joseph Cundall Joseph Cundall (22 September 1818 – 10 January 1895) was a Victorian English writer under the pseudonym of "Stephen Percy", a pioneer photographer and London publisher of children's books. He provided employment for many of the best artists o ...

. He was closely involved in the administration of and produced the reports for a series of international exhibitions held in London in the 1880s, and catalogued the art library at the South Kensington Museum, later the Victoria and Albert Museum. In 1891, he became the secretary and librarian to the

Institute of Jamaica The Institute of Jamaica (IOJ), founded in 1879, is the country's most significant cultural, artistic and scientific organisation:West India Reference Library in 1894, which became the nucleus of the

National Library of Jamaica The National Library of Jamaica is the national library of Jamaica. It is located at 12 East Street in Kingston, Jamaica. The library provides access to various collection of Jamaican literature, maps, films, newspapers, photographs, and more. ...

when it was formed in 1979.

Early life and family

Frank Cundall was born in London on 17 January 1858,Frank Cundall (1858 – 1937).

. Retrieved 26 April 2019. the son of the writer, photographer, and publisher

(1818–1895) and his wife Sarah.Ruari McLean, "Cundall, Joseph", ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

''. Retrieved 18 May 2019. After attending private schools, he gained admission to

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King G ...

, leaving in 1875."Frank Cundall, O.B.E., F.S.A., F.R.Hist.S. 1858- 1937 Ob. November 15th, 1937"
Via National Library of Jamaica. Retrieved 19 May 2019. He married twice and had a son and a daughter. His son was

Joseph Leslie Cundall Joseph Leslie Cundall, also Cundal, was the Attorney General of Jamaica.Frank Cundall (1 ...

, who became the Attorney General of Jamaica, and his daughter Frances married Guy Weihen of Munro College, Saint Elizabeth Parish.

Early career

From 1876 to 1882, Cundall was the assistant editor for the revised edition of '' Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers'' (London, George Bell). At the same time from 1877 to 1890 he was the joint editor with his father of the Illustrated Biographies of the Great Artists in 38 volumes (London: Sampson Low) and from 1879 to 1885 wrote anonymously '' The Great Historic Galleries of England'' under the editorship of Ronald Gower. Joseph Cundall was associated with

Henry Cole Sir Henry Cole FRSA (15 July 1808 – 18 April 1882) was a British civil servant and inventor who facilitated many innovations in commerce and education in the 19th century in the United Kingdom. Cole is credited with devising the concept of ...

, the first director of the South Kensington Museum, later the Victoria and Albert Museum, and in 1880–82, Frank Cundall was engaged in cataloguing the works of the National Art Library there. In 1883 he was assistant secretary to the

International Fisheries Exhibition The International Fisheries Exhibition was a Victorian era scientific, cultural, and animal exhibition open in South Kensington, London, United Kingdom, between May 12 and October 31, 1883. (The busiest day was May 15, when the official visitor co ...

, in 1884 to the International Health Exhibition, and in 1885 to the

International Inventions Exhibition The International Inventions Exhibition was a world's fair held in South Kensington in 1885. As with the earlier exhibitions in a series of fairs in South Kensington following the Great Exhibition, Queen Victoria was patron and her son Albert Edw ...

, and was assistant editor for their catalogues and handbooks. His father had been closely involved in the 1862

International Exhibition A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

. In 1886 he was the editor with Sir Philip Cunliffe-Owen of the report of the Royal Commission of the

Colonial and Indian Exhibition The Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886 was held in South Kensington in London with the objective to (in the words of the then Prince of Wales) "stimulate commerce and strengthen the bonds of union now existing in every portion of her Majes ...

. In 1889 he prepared the catalogue, report, and award lists for the British section of the Paris Exposition Universelle, and in 1890 the catalogue and guide for the Royal Military Exhibition.

Jamaica

In 1890 Cundall was appointed secretary and librarian to the

Institute of Jamaica The Institute of Jamaica (IOJ), founded in 1879, is the country's most significant cultural, artistic and scientific organisation:Frederick Abel Sir Frederick Augustus Abel, 1st Baronet (17 July 18276 September 1902) was an English chemist who was recognised as the leading British authority on explosives. He is best known for the invention of cordite as a replacement for gunpowder in ...

, Sir

James Paget Sir James Paget, 1st Baronet FRS HFRSE (11 January 1814 – 30 December 1899) (, rhymes with "gadget") was an English surgeon and pathologist who is best remembered for naming Paget's disease and who is considered, together with Rudolf Virc ...

and Sir Colville Barclay. He arrived in Kingston in February 1891. He created the West India Reference Library, founded 1894, which formed the nucleus of the

when it was created in 1979. Using his knowledge of art and his exhibition experience, he created an art gallery at the Institute for which he published a catalogue of the portraits in 1914. He was a prolific writer on the history of Jamaica, producing important bibliographies of Jamaica and the wider West Indies. He was joint editor of the '' Handbook of Jamaica'' from 1907 and became sole editor from 1920. His masterwork was to be his history of the governors of the colony, however, only the first two volumes were published before his death.

Honours and later life

Cundall was appointed a member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in 1929 and was a fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societ ...

(FSA) and of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...

(FRHS). He died on 15 November 1937.

Selected publications

Cundall's publications include:

1880s

*
Reminiscences of the Colonial and Indian Exhibition
'. William Clowes, London, 1886. (Editor) * D'Anvers, N. ''The Student's Handbook of Art; An Elementary History of Art. Painting.'' 3rd edition. Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, and Rivington, London,

889 __NOTOC__ Year 889 ( DCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Guy III, duke of Spoleto, defeats the Lombard king Berengar I at the ...

(Revised and expanded)

1890s

*
The Landscape and Pastoral Painters of Holland: Ruisdael Hobbema Cuijp Potter
'' London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1891. * ''The Story of the Life of Columbus and the Discovery of Jamaica''. Kingston, 1894. * ''Jamaica in 1895; A Handbook of Information for Intending Settlers and Others'' (Also 1896, 1897, 1901
1922
1928. Title varies) *
Jamaica Cartography: Chronological List of the Maps of Jamaica in the Library of the Institute of Jamaica &c.
' Institute of Jamaica, Kingston,

897 __NOTOC__ Year 897 ( DCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – King Lambert II travels to Rome with his mother, Queen Ageltr ...

1900s

*
Studies in Jamaica History
'. London: Sampson Low, Marston and Co., for the Institute of Jamaica, 1900. *
Bibliographia Jamaicensis; A list of Jamaica books and pamphlets, magazine articles, newspapers, and maps, most of which are in the library of the Institute of Jamaica.
' Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1902. (Supplement, 1908) *
Biographical Annals of Jamaica: A brief history of the colony, arranged as a guide to the Jamaica portrait gallery: with chronological outlines of Jamaica history.
' Educational Supply Company for the Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1904. * ''A Brief Guide to an Exhibition of Maps of the Sixteenth Century Illustrative of the Discovery of America''. Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1906. *
Political and Social Disturbances in the West Indies. A brief account and bibliography
'. Educational Supply Company for the Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1906. * ''Lady Nugent's Journal: Jamaica One Hundred Years Ago.'' A & C Black, London, 1907. (Editor) *
Bibliography of the West Indies (Excluding Jamaica).
' Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1909. *
Jamaica Place-names
'. Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1909.

1910s

* ''Catalogue of the Portraits in the Jamaica History Gallery of the Institute of Jamaica''.

Institute of Jamaica The Institute of Jamaica (IOJ), founded in 1879, is the country's most significant cultural, artistic and scientific organisation:Historic Jamaica.
' Institute of Jamaica, London, 1915. * ''The Press and Printers of Jamaica Prior to 1820''. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass, 1916.
"The Migration from Surinam to Jamaica"
'' Timehri: The Journal of the Royal Agricultural and Commercial Society of British Guiana'', Vol. VI (third series), September 1919, Colonisation volume, pp. 145–172.

1920s

* ''The Life of Enos Nuttall, Archbishop of the West Indies''. Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, London, 1922. * '' Jamaica's Part in the Great War 1914-1918''. West India Committee, London, 1925. * "Tortoiseshell Carving in Jamaica", '' The Connoisseur'', Vol. 72 (1925), pp. 154–65. * ''Chronological Outlines of Jamaica History 1492–1926''. Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1927.
"The Taxing of the Jews in Jamaica in The Seventeenth Century"
''

Publications of the American Jewish Historical Society ''American Jewish History'' is an academic journal and the official publication of the American Jewish Historical Society. The journal was established in 1892 and focuses on all aspects of the history of Jews in the United States. The journal wa ...

'', No. 31 (1928), pp. 243–247. * ''A Brief account of King's House, Spanish Town, Jamaica''. Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1929.

1930s

* ''A Brief History of the Parish Church of St. Andrew Jamaica''. Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1931. * "A Supplementary Bibliography of Richard Hill", ''The American Book Collector'', Vol. 3, No. 1 (January 1933), pp. 46–48. *
A History of Printing in Jamaica from 1717 to 1834.
' Institute of Jamaica, Kingston, 1935. * ''The Governors of Jamaica in the Seventeenth Century''. West India Committee, London, 1936. * ''The Governors of Jamaica in the First Half of the Eighteenth Century''. West India Committee, London, 1937.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cundall, Frank 1858 births 1937 deaths Members of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Historians of the Caribbean British emigrants to Jamaica Librarians from London Fellows of the Royal Historical Society 19th-century British historians English non-fiction writers Church wardens English Anglicans English editors English art historians 20th-century British historians