Antiques Trade Gazette


7


as choice narrows


and spiral columns to the hood and rectangular panels to the trunk door, sides and base. The brass dial had tulip engraving to the corners and centre, and a silvered chapter ring with a central cartouche signed Daniel Quare in Martins le Grand Londini fecit. This clock had been bought at


Sotheby’s, Chester in 1988, a time when, as James Stratton noted, collectors had a much greater choice of good early eight- day longcases and 30-hour examples were not taken seriously. However, these are now being re-appraised, thanks partly to the publication in 1997 of Darken and Hooper’s English Thirty Hour Clocks, and are starting to command far higher prices. It went to a UK private buyer for £24,000, eight times its price 24 years ago. Like 30-hour


longcases, early lantern clocks are something


of a niche market, with perhaps more academic than decorative appeal. However, the somewhat softened market was given a boost fi ve years ago by the sale at Bonhams of one of the earliest examples of this style, made by William Bowyer in 1623, which went for a record £120,000 and prices have strengthened accordingly. Here the room saw three lantern clocks take fi ve-fi gure sums. The best of these was from the third quarter of the 17th century, of characteristic style and signed along the bottom of the front fret, Thomas Knifton at the Cross Keys in Lothbury, with Knifton’s “cross- keys” pictogram. Despite some


alterations – the alarm train was


missing, the central


fi nial was a replacement and it had undergone


the inevitable conversion to anchor escapement – this was a good example of this prolifi c maker’s work. Carrying predictions of £8000-12,000, it was bought by a UK private buyer for £19,000. Two further lantern


clocks also exceeded their expectations. These were both by


“Like 30-hour longcases, early lantern clocks are something of a niche market, with perhaps more academic than decorative appeal”


Peter Closon, a successful London maker who was one of the fi rst to work under the auspices of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers after it received its Charter in 1631. Closon cast his own brass and both these clocks featured well-pierced and engraved frets. The earlier of the two, dated to the second quarter of the 17th century, had been converted to anchor escapement, while the mid-century “Second Period” example, with alarm, had been changed from balance wheel to verge escapement with pendulum. The pair nearly doubled their low estimates, the former selling at £15,000 and the latter for £13,000, both to UK collectors. Two centuries later, the Victorian


Left: a Belgian musical clock combined with a barrel organ and dulcimer in a massive architectural case, sold for £30,000 at Bonhams.


maker Thomas Cole became known for a very different design of clock. His strut clocks, intended for display on a desk or dressing table, had elegant, gilt-brass, rectangular cases framing fi nely engraved and hatched silvered dials. However, one which appeared here featured the unusual addition of hour and quarter repeating work striking on two gongs, with passing strike at the half hour. Given its rarity, the £3000-5000 prediction seemed very conservative and it was fi nally secured at £14,000 by the English trade on behalf of a collector. The other Cole clock was even rarer,


a gilt-bronze desk timepiece taking the form of a Greek urn. The central part


continued on page 8


Above: this classic Golden Age walnut longcase by George Graham had been in the same house since it was made c.1773. It was the top seller at Bonhams' June 20 sale of fi ne clocks where it made £145,000.


Clocks, Watches and Scientifi c Instruments Tuesday 16th October 2012


Invitation to consign


Enquiries to Will Hobbs 01722 339752 willhobbs@woolleyandwallis.co.uk


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52