A GEORGE II ANGLE BAROMETER

Details

CHARLES ORME, ASHBY-DE-LA-ZOUCH, DATED 1736
A GEORGE II ANGLE BAROMETER
The case of 'sign-post' form, with brass mouldings and line inlay, the silvered plate inlaid with red and black wax extending over 33”, manually adjusted sickle pointer on brass rod above tube, sealed squared cistern, signed 'made by Charles Orme of Ashby-de-la-Zouch in Leicestershire 1736'; together with a late 18th/early 19th century page of 'Observations on the Barometer' signed 'Charles Zappa fecit', in an oak frame
Walnut and brass
37 in. (94 cm.) high; 48 in. (121.9 cm.) wide; 3 1⁄4 in. (8.3 cm.) deep
(2)

Provenance

Robert Belfitt, J.P. of Sheffield.
Anonymous sale; Sotheby's, London, 19 July 1988, lot 260.

Literature

The Connoisseur, September 1916, (illustrated), recording ownership by Robert Belfitt.
C. Gilbert and T. Murdoch, John Channon and brass-inlaid furniture 1730-1760, London, 1993, p. 133.

Special notice

This lot will be removed to Christie’s Park Royal. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage and our fees for storage are set out in the table below - these will apply whether the lot remains with Christie’s or is removed elsewhere. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Christie’s Park Royal. All collections from Christie’s Park Royal will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Amelia Walker Director, Specialist Head of Private & Iconic Collections

awalker@christies.com +44 20 7389 2085

Lot Essay

Sir Nicholas Goodison noted: This is the earliest known of Orme's angle barometers. The Connoisseur (no date) illustration mentions the accompanying 'Observations' and claims that 'the only other barometer known or made by Charles Orme' is at Calke Abbey, which is not so. There are a number of other examples (see Goodison, 1977 (op. cit.), pp. 192-6). The cistern cover has been reconstructed, the design based on another surviving example (see 01.16) and on scrupulous study of the surviving acorn finial, the curve of the brass inlay and the need to accommodate the squared cistern inside.

A barometer of the same case model by Orme, also dated 1736, was sold from the Harbord family collection, Gunton Park, Norfolk, Irelands, 25 September 1980, lot 2043.

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