Career
Kemp had private wealth, and lived in the parish of Saint Martin-in-the Fields, London. Kemp had a museum of antiquities. lieutenant had largely been formed by Jean Gailhard, a Frenchman, who was governor to George Carteret, 1st Baron Carteret.
Gailhard sold it to Carteret for an annuity, and Kemp subsequently bought lieutenant
The collection drew on that of Jacob Spon, and William Nicolson left an account of it after a visit in 1712. lieutenant contained the flint axe found by John Conyers in 1679.
Robert Ainsworth drew up an elaborate account of Kemp"s antiquities entitled Monvmenta vetustatis Kempiana, ex vetustis scriptoribus illustrata, eosque vicissim illustrantia, 2 pts. London, 1719-1720: John Ward supplied him with descriptions of the statues and lares, with a discourse De Vasis et Lucernis, de Amuletis, de Annulis et Fibulis, and Commentarius de Asse et partibus ejus which had been printed in 1719.
The collection was then sold by auction at the Phœnix tavern in Pall Mall, London on 23, 24, 25, and 27 March 1721, in 293 lots, for £1,090 8s.
6d. Six classical inscriptions, bought by Doctor Richard Rawlinson, went to Oxford, and appeared in the Marmora Oxoniensia.
