Alfred Lyndhurst Pocock
(1881-1962)
Alfred Lyndhurst Pocock, affectionately known as “Lyn,” was an English sculptor and carver best remembered for his unique role in the House of Fabergé and for continuing a long family tradition in the arts. Born on Christmas Eve 1881, Pocock came from a distinguished artistic background: his father and mother, Lexden Pocock and Alicia Shellschar, were both painters, while his grandfather, Lewis Pocock, was a revolutionary figure who founded the Art Union, which helped bring art to a wider audience.
Pocock trained at the Regent Street Polytechnic before winning a scholarship to the Royal Academy Schools in 1903, where he studied until 1906. In 1905, when Queen Alexandra approached the Academy seeking an artist to undertake a royal commission, Pocock was recommended as a promising young sculptor in his twenties. He produced wax models of animals that were sent to Fabergé’s workshops in St. Petersburg to be carved in semi-precious stones. Among these works were an owl in labradorite, a grey donkey in chalcedony (from a stone found on a beach at Sidmouth), and an elephant carved from a pebble picked up on Hampstead Heath.
Close up of the White Onyx Polar Bear by Faberge Sculptor Alfred Lyndhurst Pocock
Available in our collection at Jacksons Antique
When the carvings were completed, Pocock personally presented them to Queen Alexandra, who was delighted with the results and often showed them to her friends. She admired the celebrated craftsmanship of Fabergé’s workshop but would remark, “this is an example of what an Englishman can do.” This introduction began Pocock’s long association with Fabergé, which lasted around thirteen years. According to Henry Charles Bainbridge, Fabergé’s European manager, Pocock worked alongside Boris Frodman-Cluzel and Frank Lutiger on Fabergé commissions at Sandringham in 1907 for King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
Pocock’s role was to create small plaster maquettes which could then be carved in a range of stones or other materials in Fabergé’s Russian workshops. To this day, he is believed to be the only Englishman ever to carve for Fabergé. Following the Russian Revolution and the closure of the House of Fabergé, Pocock continued working independently in London, establishing himself as a prolific sculptor and later founding his own school.
Photograph of Alfred Lyndhurst Pocock Showroom displaying multiple carvings by the artist
Initially, Pocock often collected his own materials for carving but later sourced them from Percy and Winifred Bottley of Gregory, Bottley & Co., mineralogists based on Old Church Street. The Bottleys frequently set aside stones they felt might inspire him, and their relationship endured throughout his life. Pocock worked not only in minerals but also in amber, mother-of-pearl, coral, wood, and even terracotta. A notable example of his versatility is The Yawn, a whimsical dormouse carved from wood taken from a fallen laburnum tree in the Bottleys’ garden.
Known for his tireless output, Pocock is believed to have completed more than forty-five carvings in a single year. He was often seen carrying his carvings in his pocket, along with his tools kept in an old spectacle case, working while travelling on steam trains to and from London.
In later years, Pocock lived in Slinfold, Sussex, where he remained active until his death in 1962.
Today, he is remembered both as a skilled sculptor and as the only Englishman to work directly with Fabergé, linking English craftsmanship with one of the most celebrated names in decorative art.