William Parrott, an Essex farmer's son, was born in 1813. He was apprenticed to John Pye the engraver, who had been taught his craft by Charles Heath, had contributed to Beauties of England and Wales and had gained a considerable reputation for his plates on steel after Turner. However, Parrott soon became a painter and from 1835 exhibited at the Royal Academy, the British Institution and the Society of British Artists in Suffolk Street.
