Height

7 foot 5 inches (226 cms).

Case

The hood is surmounted by an elaborate walnut cresting carved with two baskets of flowers flanking a large scallop shell within further foliate carving. The frieze is set with a foliate-pierced walnut sound fret above walnut Solomonic columns flanking the dial, now cut for a door and converted to forward-sliding, with glazed panels to the sides. All resting on convex walnut throat mouldings, the trunk door with D-end frame mouldings and elaborate bird-and-floral marquetry in geometric panels and a brass-framed oval lenticle by the escutcheon. The rectangular plinth panel is inlaid with further matching marquetry above a later walnut-veneered double skirting.

Dial

The 11 inch square brass dial is signed Dan Quare London on the silvered chapter ring flanking VI, the Roman numerals with elaborate fleur-de-lys half-hour markers and Arabic minutes within the outer division ring. The matted centre has Quare’s archetypal ringed winding holes, with a seconds ring below XII, decorated date aperture and elaborately pierced and shaped blued steel hands. The corners are applied with winged cherub-and-foliate spandrels with foliate border engraving between, and the dial is fixed to the frontplate by four pinned dial feet.

Movement

The substantial rectangular plated movement held by five ring-turned baluster pillars, which are fully latched; the going train has an anchor escapement with a one-second, steel rod and brass lenticular bob, pendulum; the strike train is governed by an inside countwheel, mounted on the greatwheel and striking on the large bell above the plates, both trains driven by matching brass-cased weights.

Duration

8 days.

Provenance

1980, Anthony Woodburn and sold to private collection UK;

2001, Derek Roberts and sold to;

The Keith Roberts Collection, inventory no.15.

Literature

Antiquarian Horology, Autumn 1980, Anthony Woodburn advertisement;

Antiquarian Horology, Spring 2001, Derek Roberts advertisement;

Exceptional English Clockwork, The Keith Roberts Collection, 2015, pp. 126-129.