Edward Bright was a grocer

Grocer

A grocer is a bulk seller of food. Beginning as early as the 14th century, a grocer was a dealer in comestible dry goods such as spices, pepper, sugar, and cocoa, tea and coffee...

 in Maldon, Essex

Maldon, Essex

Maldon is a town on the Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon district and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.Maldon is twinned with the Dutch town of Cuijk...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 — known as the "fat man of Maldon" — who was reputed at the time of his death in 1750 to be the "fattest

Obesity

Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...

 man in England". He lived in a house on Maldon's High Street, and is buried in Maldon's Church of All Saints.

Bright weighed 47.5 stone

Stone (weight)

The stone is a units of measurement that was used in many North European countries until the advent of metrication. It value, which ranged from 3 kg to 12 kg, varied from city to city and also often from commodity to commodity...

 (665 lb or 302 kg).

His coat was said to be large enough to have seven men stand inside it, although this is also sometimes stated as seven hundred men because of a tale in which a man in a local pub (hotel) tempted a gambler

Gambling

Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...

 with a bet

Bet

Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...

 that "seven hundred men" would fit into Edward Bright’s waistcoat

Waistcoat

A waistcoat or vest is a sleeveless upper-body garment worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wear, and as the third piece of the three-piece male business suit.-Characteristics and use:...

. The bet was accepted. The gambler lost, because seven men from the Dengie

Dengie

Dengie is a village and civil parish in the Maldon district of Essex, England, with a population of 135.It gives its name to the Dengie peninsula and hundred and to the Dengie Special Protection Area....

 Hundred (a parcel of land) fitted into the waistcoat.

His portrait was painted in 1750 by David Ogborne (1700–1768), after whose painting various etchings were published, including:

• 1750 - Irish engraver
  Engraving
  Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
  
   James McArdell (1728–1765)
• 1751 - Anthony Walker, published by John Hinton

In 2000, a bronze

Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...

 relief of seven men in Bright's coat, by sculptor Catharni Stern

Catharni Stern

Catharni Stern is an English sculptor and art teacher.-Education:Stern was educated at Chelmsford County High School then studied at the Mid-Essex School of Art, Chelmsford...

, was installed at the King's Head Centre off Maldon's High Street, near Bright's former home.