E. P. Bottley
Edward Percival Bottley, known as E. P. Bottley (10 January 1904 – 8 February 1980), was an English geologist and businessman. In about 1928, he and his wife Winifred started a geological dealership in Derby, mainly selling microscope slides. Bottley also made 113 illustrations in colour and black and white.
In the 1930s they took over Gregory's and grew the business to serve museums, universities, and private collectors, dealing in gemstones and minerals. They collected works by their friend Alfred Lyndhurst Pocock, a London Fabergé carver, and built a large display of Pocock’s pieces.
They were friends with Charles Vyse, the Chelsea Potter, and their shop drew many famous visitors, including Cary Grant, who nicknamed their showroom "Aladdins Cave" and visited upstairs at 30 Old Church Street, Chelsea.
The Bottleys kept the business going through the Second World War and served as fire watchers at Chelsea Old Church near their premises. Tragically, two staff members, Sidney Simms and Fred Winter, and several firewatch volunteers were killed in an air raid while they were away on a stock-collecting trip to North Wales. After the war they helped rebuild the church and worshipped there for the rest of their lives.
E. P. Bottley died in 1980. Winifred ran the business briefly after his death, then handed it to Brian Lloyd, who continued the work, keeping the company name and staff at Winifred’s request. Winifred Bottley died in 2006 at the age of 99.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 23:31 (CET).