Robert H. Ellsworth

Robert Hatfield Ellsworth (July 13, 1929 – August 3, 2014) was a Manhattan-based American art collector and dealer of Asian paintings and furniture from the Ming dynasty. His art collection can be found in museums in the United States. He was a supporter of architectural restoration in Huangshan, China and is an honorary Chinese citizen.

Early life Robert H. Ellsworth was born on July 13, 1929, in Manhattan, New York City. His father, Presley Elmer Ellsworth (1894-1957) was a dentist and his mother, LaFerne Hatfield Ellsworth (1900-1976) an opera singer. On his paternal side, he was a descendant of Oliver Ellsworth. and perfected the porcelain capping of teeth, He opened his own shop in 1959, at the age of 30. In 1970, he moved his business and residence to a Manhattan townhouse, which he shared with actress Claudette Colbert until 1977, when he moved his business and residence to an apartment at 960 Fifth Avenue. He remained at 960 Fifth Avenue for the balance of his career. He also published Later Chinese Painting and Calligraphy: 1800-1950, a three-volume art book, in 1987. Ellsworth founded the Hong-Kong based Chinese Heritage Art Foundation, a non-profit organization whose aim is to restore Ming and Qing dynasty-era architecture in Huizhou District of Huangshan, Anhui Province, China.

Ellsworth's companion, Hashiguchi, as executor, in 2015 sued attorney George L. Bischof, who drafted Ellsworth's will in 2010, arguing that it "fails to qualify for the federal estate tax charitable deduction." Meanwhile, the will revealed that he donated US$50,000 to two waitresses at Donohue's Steak House