| Height | 6 foot 10¼ inches |
| Case | The case veneered in walnut, inlaid with all-over marquetry to the leading surface, onto an oak carcass. The forward sliding hood surmounted by a walnut caddy top flanked by two giltwood ball finials over a double blind-fret frieze and walnut cornice moulding. The dial aperture supported by conforming walnut Solomonic columns with integral capitals and bases to the marquetry fronted hood, with matching side quarter-columns beyond the glazed side apertures. The dial accessed by an upward sliding glazed sash window, lifting the ogee moulding between the finials. The trunk with marquetry-fronted convex throat mouldings above an acanthus banded frame, the trunk door with all-over floral and arabesque marquetry trunk door on an ebonised ground with pendulum lenticle, the sides veneered in plain walnut with boxwood and ebony line inlaid frames. The cross-grain walnut base mouldings, over the matching marquetry panelled plinth raised on turned walnut bun feet. |
| Dial | The 12 inch (305 mm) square brass dial with four pinned dial feet, the corners with four large foliate and winged cherub spandrels, the silvered brass chapter ring with Roman hours and fancy sword-hilt half-hour markers, and signed Daniel Quare, London around VI, the Arabic minutes, engraved every 5, within the division ring. The finely matted plain centre with elegant delicately pierced and shaped, blued steel hands, the minute hand counter-balanced. The winding aperture pierced through the chapter ring at VI. |
| Movement | The tall rectangular movement plates held by six finned baluster pillars pinned to the frontplate, the high count six-wheel going train planted centrally with a recoil anchor escapement and one-second pendulum. The substantial barrel is wound clockwise and has a large finely cut greatwheel, engaging with high numbered pinions and two intermediate wheels, providing ample capacity for the six-month duration. The fifth and escape wheels, together with the pallets, have shorter arbors with their front pinions mounted onto a sub-plate, allowing for extra delicacy and requiring the minimum of power to run. The hour wheel runs directly on the canon wheel pipe without a bridge, its smooth operation assisted by the delicately counterpoised minute hand. |
| Duration | 6 months |
| Provenance | Private collection UK, until sold 1992 by Galbraith for £110,000; The John C Taylor Collection, inventory no.4 |
| Literature | Antiquarian Horological Society 10th Anniversary Exhibition, catalogue 1964, Exhibit no.10 (illus.) Country Life, 4 June 1964, Clutton, ‘Masterpieces of The Clockmaker’s Art’ (illus.) Dawson, Drover & Parkes, Early English Clocks, 1982, p.215 & 217, pl.290 & 390. Horological Masterworks, 2003, p.194-195. |
| Escapement | Anchor with one-second pendulum |
| Exhibited | 1964, The Antiquarian Horological Society 10th Anniversary Exhibition at the Science Museum London, exhibit no.10; 2003, Horological Masterworks, Oxford Museum for the History of Science and the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, exhibit no.43 |
Exhibit № 26: Daniel Quare, London. Circa 1695
A very rare William III floral marquetry veneered six-month going longcase timepiece
£150,000
The use here of an apparently unique upward-sliding ‘sash’ window in the hood was undoubtedly for practical reasons, giving ease of access without a hinged door, which itself would only become commonplace later. However, the inspiration for such a novel approach at this date is likely to have come from the relatively recent introduction of sash widows in contemporary buildings of the time, where their use was still confined to the finest and most expensive houses.
While it is not known for certain who invented sash windows, or precisely when, general consensus amongst architectural historians is that they originated in France during the first half of 17th century, and from there spread to England in circa 1670, where weights and pulleys were first applied, and these were only within the price reach of the richest in society. Some of the earliest surviving examples of sash windows in England are at Ham House in Richmond. These date from the 1670s and display many early design features, like pane placing and astragal bar styling, which would subsequently become such prominent and archetypal features of Queen Anne and Georgian era architecture.
Daniel Quare was the most prolific maker of long duration clocks of his generation, this appears to be one of his earliest and is an archetypal example of Quare’s finest commissioned work. Running for six months at a single winding, the surviving original large brass-cased weight required the inside of the trunk door to be hollowed out in a slight arc for clearance.
Details of Daniel Quare’s early life are rather obscure – it is thought he was born in Somerset circa 1647/48, but it is not known to whom he was apprenticed or where he learned his trade. Described as a Great [turret] Clockmaker he was admitted to the Clockmakers’ Company as a Freeman on 3rd April 1671, the same year as Joseph Knibb and Thomas Tompion. He served the Company as Assistant from 1698 and was elected Junior Warden in 1705, rising to Master in 1708.
Quare produced some of the finest clocks, watches and instruments made in London in the late 17th and early 18th Centuries, but his rise to prominence was not immediate. While he successfully challenged Barlow’s watch repeating patent in 1687, it was not until 1690s that Quare’s clock output took on a truly identifiable individual form and at this time, it becomes apparent that he had slowly taken over Joseph Knibb’s position as Tompion’s principal rival in the trade. This reflected his ascendancy in reputation and business, most notable perhaps was his successful patent application in 1695 for portable barometers, that undoubtedly enhanced his reputation and boosted his business considerably.
It should be noted that Quare took a completely different approach from Tompion in retailing his clocks. While Tompion stopped buying in unspecified movements and consolidated his workshop practices in the 1680s, Quare continued to provide as wide a stock as possible for all customers throughout his career. This approach, doubtless for commercial reasons, necessitated clocks of all qualities offered side by side. A brief overview indicates how he had several grades of stock, which can be broadly categorised as follows:
1. Commissioned clocks. These were either designed and made within Quare’s workshops, or by outworkers elsewhere with the requisite skills, in either scenario being finished to his high specification. These represent some of the foremost clocks of the era, often in palace grade cases with specifically designed metal mounts, including two superb Grande Sonnerie table clocks (see previous exhibit no.25), equation clocks, long duration clocks (such as the current example) and the mean and sidereal double-dialed longcases, and a solar time table clock, besides the sought-after small and miniature clocks following Tompion’s style.
2. Standard workshop production. These are Quare’s standard domestic clocks that were generally made in his workshops. They are of extremely high quality and include month-going longcases as well as quarter repeating table clocks. Quare’s own workshop-made productions are relatively easy to identify, having his own pattern of repeating systems, as well as very particular styling of component parts. But while hoping not to confuse matters, it must be borne in mind that he also supplied other businesses.
3. Bought-in stock. Generally these clocks are perfectly presentable examples of standard London table clocks – often supplied to Quare complete, including cases – but to a lower standard than his own workshop-made domestic clocks. These were mostly repeating table clocks and almost identical examples can be found signed by Windmills, Gretton and others.
Daniel Quare died on 21st March 1724, aged 75, and was buried in the Quakers’ Cemetery at Bunhill Fields, Finsbury. His will was proved on 26th March 1724, and on the same day, The Daily Post announced: Last week dy’d Mr. Daniel Quare, watchmaker in Exchange Alley, who was famous both here and at foreign courts for the great improvements he made in that art, and we hear he is succeeded in his shop and trade by his partner, Mr. Horseman.
Daniel Quare’s reputation continued long after his death and association with his name was still a powerful marketing tool. Twenty-five years later, clocks by the Grignions can be found signed … from the late Mr. Quare. Later still and in the colonies, responding as ‘Clarendon’ to the ‘Pym’ letters in the London Evening Post of 1765, John Adams wrote his third letter to the Boston Gazette, dated 27 January 1766 about the fundamentals of human life… A clock also has a constitution… this is the proper business of Quare, Tomlinson [Tompion] and Graham, to execute the workmanship like artists, and come as near to perfection… Over 40 years had past, but Quare was still held up as being one of the foremost makers of the time. Adams was later to be 1st Vice-President, 1789-1797, and 2nd President of the United States, 1797-1801, and by the time of his death in 1826, Quare had been dead and buried for over 100 years.
Product Description
The use here of an apparently unique upward-sliding ‘sash’ window in the hood was undoubtedly for practical reasons, giving ease of access without a hinged door, which itself would only become commonplace later. However, the inspiration for such a novel approach at this date is likely to have come from the relatively recent introduction of sash widows in contemporary buildings of the time, where their use was still confined to the finest and most expensive houses.
While it is not known for certain who invented sash windows, or precisely when, general consensus amongst architectural historians is that they originated in France during the first half of 17th century, and from there spread to England in circa 1670, where weights and pulleys were first applied, and these were only within the price reach of the richest in society. Some of the earliest surviving examples of sash windows in England are at Ham House in Richmond. These date from the 1670s and display many early design features, like pane placing and astragal bar styling, which would subsequently become such prominent and archetypal features of Queen Anne and Georgian era architecture.
Daniel Quare was the most prolific maker of long duration clocks of his generation, this appears to be one of his earliest and is an archetypal example of Quare’s finest commissioned work. Running for six months at a single winding, the surviving original large brass-cased weight required the inside of the trunk door to be hollowed out in a slight arc for clearance.
Details of Daniel Quare’s early life are rather obscure – it is thought he was born in Somerset circa 1647/48, but it is not known to whom he was apprenticed or where he learned his trade. Described as a Great [turret] Clockmaker he was admitted to the Clockmakers’ Company as a Freeman on 3rd April 1671, the same year as Joseph Knibb and Thomas Tompion. He served the Company as Assistant from 1698 and was elected Junior Warden in 1705, rising to Master in 1708.
Quare produced some of the finest clocks, watches and instruments made in London in the late 17th and early 18th Centuries, but his rise to prominence was not immediate. While he successfully challenged Barlow’s watch repeating patent in 1687, it was not until 1690s that Quare’s clock output took on a truly identifiable individual form and at this time, it becomes apparent that he had slowly taken over Joseph Knibb’s position as Tompion’s principal rival in the trade. This reflected his ascendancy in reputation and business, most notable perhaps was his successful patent application in 1695 for portable barometers, that undoubtedly enhanced his reputation and boosted his business considerably.
It should be noted that Quare took a completely different approach from Tompion in retailing his clocks. While Tompion stopped buying in unspecified movements and consolidated his workshop practices in the 1680s, Quare continued to provide as wide a stock as possible for all customers throughout his career. This approach, doubtless for commercial reasons, necessitated clocks of all qualities offered side by side. A brief overview indicates how he had several grades of stock, which can be broadly categorised as follows:
1. Commissioned clocks. These were either designed and made within Quare’s workshops, or by outworkers elsewhere with the requisite skills, in either scenario being finished to his high specification. These represent some of the foremost clocks of the era, often in palace grade cases with specifically designed metal mounts, including two superb Grande Sonnerie table clocks (see previous exhibit no.25), equation clocks, long duration clocks (such as the current example) and the mean and sidereal double-dialed longcases, and a solar time table clock, besides the sought-after small and miniature clocks following Tompion’s style.
2. Standard workshop production. These are Quare’s standard domestic clocks that were generally made in his workshops. They are of extremely high quality and include month-going longcases as well as quarter repeating table clocks. Quare’s own workshop-made productions are relatively easy to identify, having his own pattern of repeating systems, as well as very particular styling of component parts. But while hoping not to confuse matters, it must be borne in mind that he also supplied other businesses.
3. Bought-in stock. Generally these clocks are perfectly presentable examples of standard London table clocks – often supplied to Quare complete, including cases – but to a lower standard than his own workshop-made domestic clocks. These were mostly repeating table clocks and almost identical examples can be found signed by Windmills, Gretton and others.
Daniel Quare died on 21st March 1724, aged 75, and was buried in the Quakers’ Cemetery at Bunhill Fields, Finsbury. His will was proved on 26th March 1724, and on the same day, The Daily Post announced: Last week dy’d Mr. Daniel Quare, watchmaker in Exchange Alley, who was famous both here and at foreign courts for the great improvements he made in that art, and we hear he is succeeded in his shop and trade by his partner, Mr. Horseman.
Daniel Quare’s reputation continued long after his death and association with his name was still a powerful marketing tool. Twenty-five years later, clocks by the Grignions can be found signed … from the late Mr. Quare. Later still and in the colonies, responding as ‘Clarendon’ to the ‘Pym’ letters in the London Evening Post of 1765, John Adams wrote his third letter to the Boston Gazette, dated 27 January 1766 about the fundamentals of human life… A clock also has a constitution… this is the proper business of Quare, Tomlinson [Tompion] and Graham, to execute the workmanship like artists, and come as near to perfection… Over 40 years had past, but Quare was still held up as being one of the foremost makers of the time. Adams was later to be 1st Vice-President, 1789-1797, and 2nd President of the United States, 1797-1801, and by the time of his death in 1826, Quare had been dead and buried for over 100 years.
Additional information
| Dimensions | 5827373 cm |
|---|
