A SINGLE-HAND PRE-BALANCE SPRING VERGE PENDANT WATCH

On succession to the English throne in 1603 James I (and VI of Scotland) appointed David Ramsay as Keeper of all His Majesty’s Clocks and Watches, and subsequently Clockmaker Extraordinary in 1613. Ramsay’s origins and training are unclear but he is thought to have been born in either Dalhousie or more likely Dundee in the mid 1580s. He was in France prior to his Royal appointments and it is there that he is likely to have learnt his trade. Despite trading in London he signed his movements ‘David Ramsay Scotus’, probably to show his Royal allegiance.

The oval case design is typical for this period, the principally floral engraving shows a slight move away from the Continental inspired designs prevalent during the 16th century to incorporate more plants, fruit and foliage, a reflection of an interest in plants for medicinal purposes particularly after outbreaks of bubonic plague in the 1590s and early 1600s. The plague had a ruinous effect on the London watchmaking trade. It is estimated that there were only a dozen makers active in England in the early 17th century.
London by the 1620s was a thriving and important centre for the craft and Ramsay continued as Royal Clockmaker under Charles I. In 1632 Ramsay was appointed first Master of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers, whose Charter had been granted the previous year at the third time of appealing to the Crown. Ramsay was an infrequent attendee at the Clockmakers Court other than to grant himself funds. He died in 1660.

His most important surviving watches and clocks include an oval pocket watch, traditionally given by James VI to Robert Ker, 1st Earl of Somerset, in the National Museum of Scotland (H.NL 63); a star-shaped verge watch in the Clockmakers Company collection (Science Museum L2015-3086); and an oval verge watch with astronomical indications formerly in the Djanogly Collection, sold Sotheby’s, London, 15 December 2015, lot 4.