AN ENGLISH SILVER AND ENAMEL CLOCK

DESIGNED BY ARCHIBALD KNOX; MAKER'S MARK OF LIBERTY & CO., BIRMINGHAM, 1905

Details

AN ENGLISH SILVER AND ENAMEL CLOCK
designed by archibald knox; maker's mark of liberty & co., birmingham, 1905
Square, the front panel with celtic motif border, the clock face enamelled with blue, green and orange enamel, the reverse with hinged door, fitted with a french movement and key, marked on side and interior door
5¼in. (13.1cm.) high

Literature

cf. Stephen A. Martin, Archibald Knox, Academy Editions, London, 1995, p. 90 and A.J. Tilbrook with Gordon House, The designs of ARCHIBALD KNOX for LIBERTY & Co, Ornament Press Ltd., London, England, 1976, p. 130, fig. 112 for illustrations of this model.

Lot Essay

Archibald Knox (1865-1941), born on the Isle of Man, was inspired by his Celtic heritage and used The Book of Kells as his main resource for design. While Knox was developing his design skills, Arthur Lasenby Liberty was planning his next marketing venture for his business Liberty & Co. Having decided that native designs and crafts were going to be easily received by the mass market Liberty hired Knox as his principle designer. The May 1899 exhibition was organized by Liberty & Co. in order to launch their new line of silver called "Cymric". At this time, however, Knox was the hidden creative genius. Liberty would have preferred to keep all of his designers a mystery but the Arts & Crafts exhibition in 1903 required that designers names be noted for entry. It was due to this policy that Archibald Knox was revealed and credited for his innovative and popular interpretations of the celtic decorations.