Wertheimer, Asher

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WERTHEIMER, ASHER

WERTHEIMER, ASHER (1844–1918), British art dealer. One of the most famous fine art dealers of his time, Wertheimer inherited his Bond Street business from his father, samson (d. 1892), who founded it in the mid-19th century. He developed it into one of the most significant in Britain, a rival to *Duveen Brothers and other dealers who sold art to the very rich. Wertheimer bought many works from the Russian nobility for sale in the West, and in 1898 paid the colossal sum of £122,000 for 83 paintings from the Hope Collection. Wertheimer is best remembered today for the famous portraits of him and his family painted by John Singer Sargent. Wertheimer left over £1.5 million at his death, a vast fortune at the time.

[William D. Rubinstein (2nd ed.)]