Desmond Kirkpatrick (1932-2024)

Desmond ‘Des’ Kirkpatrick was an extraordinary man, who, in a well-lived lifetime, travelled to every corner of the planet - from Bombay to Bhutan, Angola to Antarctica.  He rode luxury trains and mountain jeeps, camels and Zodiac landing craft. He sailed the seas on the great ocean liners and the smaller expedition ships  He explored the world in well over half a century - and as few others have.

He was also a world-class collector and, in the process, became something of an expert of each item, its provenance, even the detailed history of his actual acquisition.    His apartment in Lower Manhattan was something of a mini-museum – with choice items displayed, much like soldiers on review, in glass-fronted cabinets. Item after item happily saw the light of day.   He knew each and every plate, teacup, bowl, statue, vase, miniature, carving and piece of jewellery, and its heritage.  

During his overseas visits, he often interacted with the locals – and in so doing, would unearth collectables, discover family keepsakes and other items that were often actually treasures. Des very often went well behind the usual travel limits and actually escorted, in the 1970s, some of the first tourists into then very restricted China.   Consequently, he built up a collection of rare items, and not only from China, but from Tibet and Bhutan.  

Des had a life well-lived.   Personally, he considered it a great blessing to have had the best of both worlds:  a lifetime of travel and of meeting people of varied cultures.  And all while his collection steadily grew.  He cherished his collection and took great pride in it.