| Height | 17⁄16 inches (36 mm) in length |
| Case | The plain gold oval inner case with fixed turned pommel and loose ring pendant, the glazed split-bezel hinged below the pendant, the plain bowl back with a single shuttered winding hole; the plain and solid outer case hinged at IX with a latch lock opposite, the stepped rim slotted for the inner case pommel at XII. |
| Dial | The plain gold dial plate, inset with an outer rotating silver Arabic calendar ring, calibrated 1 to 31 and indicated by an engraved ‘pointing hand’ above XII, the inner 19mm gold hour chapter ring laid-on to the dial pate, with Roman numerals and arrow half-hour marks between, and a single push-fit blued steel bud-form hour hand. |
| Movement | The gilt-brass oval movement plates are held by four pierced and chased Egyptian pillars, with spring barrel, fusee and gut line to the three-wheel verge train, worm and wheel set-up with blued-steel scrolling brackets, the plain steel balance held by the pierced gilt cock with pinned asymmetric foot, engraved with foliage and flowers, the backplate signed James Vautrollier Fecit in fine cursive script. |
| Duration | 30 hour |
| Provenance | Edward Hornby collection, until sold; Sotheby’s 1 December 1978, lot 26; The Time Museum Collection, Rockford, Illinois, USA, inventory no.4453, until sold; Sotheby’s NY, 2 December 1999, lot 38 for $29,000; John C Taylor Collection, inventory no.74 |
| Comparative Literature | Clutton & Daniels, Watches, 3rd Ed., 1979, pls.79 a-c; Tresors d’Horlogerie, exhibition catalogue, Avignon, 1998, no.117 |
| Literature | Kate Youde, Collector with a mind for the mechanical, Financial Times, 17 March 2016 (illus); Garnier & Hollis, Innovation & Collaboration, 2018, p.128 The Luxury of Time, Clocks from 1550-1750, 2019, p.15 |
| Escapement | Verge and plain steel balance with pinned cock |
| Exhibited | 1980s-90s, The Time Museum, Rockford, Illinois, USA; 2018, London, Innovation & Collaboration, exhibit no.111 2019-20, The Luxury of Time, Nat. Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, exhibit no.2:3 |
Exhibit № 3: The Hornby Vautrollier. Circa 1625
An exceedingly rare Charles I gold double-cased Puritan watch with silver calendar by James Vautrollier, London
£45,000
James Vautrollier was born c.1575 in the parish of St Anne’s, Blackfriars, to Huguenot immigrant parents. It is not known where he was apprenticed, but the Blacksmiths’ records show that he gained his Freedom by redemption from that Company in October 1610. By 1622, he is recorded as an ‘alien’ working ‘without Temple Bar’ and, in the same year, was one of 16 craftsmen who unsuccessfully petitioned James I to charter the Clockmakers’ own Livery Company. After Charles I succeeded to the throne in 1625, he too was petitioned, but it took several more years before the king chartered the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers in 1631. The king specified that the royal clockmaker, David Ramsay, was to be appointed as the Company’s first Master, and Vautrollier became one of its first Assistants. It is not known when Vautrollier died, and his last entry in the Clockmakers’ records is of a new apprentice taken in August 1641, Robert Wynn, who was never made Free.
Puritan watches are so called on account of their extremely plain, undecorated form and, despite the lack of outer adornment, this example would have been very costly. Puritan watches are scarce in any instance, and while a small number of watches survive in gilt-metal and silver, solid gold examples are particularly rare. Their residual gold value was such that it is presumed many were melted down and recycled, not only to keep abreast of changes in fashion, but also during times of upheaval, such as the Commonwealth.
With the exception of the required engraved ‘pointing hand’ calendar indicator and chapter rings, this watch is devoid of all outer decoration. The hidden movement however, gave the watchmaker an opportunity to display a little more of his talents and each element, from regulation to balance cock, is beautifully shaped, decorated and finished, the cursive signature is understandably bold, while the Egyptian pillars have been meticulously turned, tapered, pierced and, in opposition to the outside, adorned with delicate highlight engraving.
Edward Hornby (1908-1998) was a lawyer and preeminent collector of rare and important pocket watches in the post-war era, whose historic collection, including this Vautrollier watch, was sold by Sotheby’s in December 1978. Hornby bought his first watch in the 1930s, and was a close friend of Cecil ‘Sam’ Clutton (1909–1991), a Master of the Clockmakers’ Company and founder member of the Antiquarian Horological Society. Clutton had introduced Hornby to George Daniels (1926-2011) and in 1969, Daniels made his first ever pocket watch for Clutton. On its delivery in 1970, Hornby immediately ordered his own and the story was told by Daniels himself, when the Hornby Daniels was auctioned for the first time by Sotheby’s on 22nd June 1999:
Edward Hornby began collecting watches in the 1930s. His interest centred on the origins of his purchases and their aesthetic qualities. I first met him in 1960 when he began to intensify his interest in horology. We became firm friends and, in 1970, Edward expressed a wish to add a ‘Daniels’ to his collection. This tourbillon was added to the collection in 1971. It was the fourth example made and…. when Edward Hornby sold his collection at Sotheby’s in December 1978, he kept the tourbillon …. Concerned that the tourbillon could not equal his new quartz watch, he ran the two together. The test lasted 8 months before the battery went flat and he cheerfully awarded the honour to the tourbillon. Its daily variation rate at room temperature averaged 0-3 seconds per day.
The 1978 Sotheby’s auction catalogue was accompanied by a foreword from Daniels, where he described the sale as a rare opportunity to acquire some fine and interesting watches of types that have not been available for purchase for many years. It was a resounding success and from a total of 80 lots, only five remained unsold. The collection represented forty years of careful acquisitions and contained some magnificent pocket watches, including highlights by Breguet, John Arnold, Jaquet Droz, Daniel Quare and, of course, the current Vautrollier Puritan watch, which was estimated at £4-6,000, the hammer not falling until the watch had reached £11,500.
Out of stock
Product Description
James Vautrollier was born c.1575 in the parish of St Anne’s, Blackfriars, to Huguenot immigrant parents. It is not known where he was apprenticed, but the Blacksmiths’ records show that he gained his Freedom by redemption from that Company in October 1610. By 1622, he is recorded as an ‘alien’ working ‘without Temple Bar’ and, in the same year, was one of 16 craftsmen who unsuccessfully petitioned James I to charter the Clockmakers’ own Livery Company. After Charles I succeeded to the throne in 1625, he too was petitioned, but it took several more years before the king chartered the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers in 1631. The king specified that the royal clockmaker, David Ramsay, was to be appointed as the Company’s first Master, and Vautrollier became one of its first Assistants. It is not known when Vautrollier died, and his last entry in the Clockmakers’ records is of a new apprentice taken in August 1641, Robert Wynn, who was never made Free.
Puritan watches are so called on account of their extremely plain, undecorated form and, despite the lack of outer adornment, this example would have been very costly. Puritan watches are scarce in any instance, and while a small number of watches survive in gilt-metal and silver, solid gold examples are particularly rare. Their residual gold value was such that it is presumed many were melted down and recycled, not only to keep abreast of changes in fashion, but also during times of upheaval, such as the Commonwealth.
With the exception of the required engraved ‘pointing hand’ calendar indicator and chapter rings, this watch is devoid of all outer decoration. The hidden movement however, gave the watchmaker an opportunity to display a little more of his talents and each element, from regulation to balance cock, is beautifully shaped, decorated and finished, the cursive signature is understandably bold, while the Egyptian pillars have been meticulously turned, tapered, pierced and, in opposition to the outside, adorned with delicate highlight engraving.
Edward Hornby (1908-1998) was a lawyer and preeminent collector of rare and important pocket watches in the post-war era, whose historic collection, including this Vautrollier watch, was sold by Sotheby’s in December 1978. Hornby bought his first watch in the 1930s, and was a close friend of Cecil ‘Sam’ Clutton (1909–1991), a Master of the Clockmakers’ Company and founder member of the Antiquarian Horological Society. Clutton had introduced Hornby to George Daniels (1926-2011) and in 1969, Daniels made his first ever pocket watch for Clutton. On its delivery in 1970, Hornby immediately ordered his own and the story was told by Daniels himself, when the Hornby Daniels was auctioned for the first time by Sotheby’s on 22nd June 1999:
Edward Hornby began collecting watches in the 1930s. His interest centred on the origins of his purchases and their aesthetic qualities. I first met him in 1960 when he began to intensify his interest in horology. We became firm friends and, in 1970, Edward expressed a wish to add a ‘Daniels’ to his collection. This tourbillon was added to the collection in 1971. It was the fourth example made and…. when Edward Hornby sold his collection at Sotheby’s in December 1978, he kept the tourbillon …. Concerned that the tourbillon could not equal his new quartz watch, he ran the two together. The test lasted 8 months before the battery went flat and he cheerfully awarded the honour to the tourbillon. Its daily variation rate at room temperature averaged 0-3 seconds per day.
The 1978 Sotheby’s auction catalogue was accompanied by a foreword from Daniels, where he described the sale as a rare opportunity to acquire some fine and interesting watches of types that have not been available for purchase for many years. It was a resounding success and from a total of 80 lots, only five remained unsold. The collection represented forty years of careful acquisitions and contained some magnificent pocket watches, including highlights by Breguet, John Arnold, Jaquet Droz, Daniel Quare and, of course, the current Vautrollier Puritan watch, which was estimated at £4-6,000, the hammer not falling until the watch had reached £11,500.
Additional information
| Dimensions | 5827373 cm |
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