David Esterly (1944–2019) was a professional limewood carver, self-taught, whose work brought the Grinling Gibbons tradition firmly into the present and can be found in private and public collections. He played a key role in restoration work at Hampton Court Palace following the disastrous fire of 1986 and curated the award-winning V&A exhibition Grinling Gibbons and the Art of Carving in 1998. He was the subject and author of numerous articles and reviews appearing in the The Times, The Independent, The New York Times, The New Yorker, Apollo, The Times Literary Supplement, The Magazine Antiques, The Spectator, and elsewhere. Esterly's memoir The Lost Carving: A Journey to the Heart of Making (2013) was named a best book of the year by The New Republic and The Times Literary Supplement.