A Charles II olivewood striking table clock

WILLIAM KNOTTESFORD, LONDON

細節

A Charles II olivewood striking table clock
William Knottesford, London
The ebony-moulded case, originally on turntable base with ogee moulded narrow caddy to the top with integral drawer, plain oyster frieze above the front door with ebonised twist columns having gilt-metal elaborate Corinthian capitals, gilt-metal eagle escutcheon, narrow glazed sides, the 9in. sq. dial signed William Knottesford, London beneath the replaced narrow silvered chapter ring with pierced and sculpted blued steel hands, the finely matted centre with subsidiary seconds ring and calendar aperture, finely chased winged cherub spandrels, latches to the dial feet and to the eight ringed pillars of the movement with shouldered plates, split front plate, twin gut fusees, verge escapement, inside countwheel strike on a bell, replaced bolt-and-shutter maintaining power, the movement now secured with two brass locking bars to the base pillars and with later seatboard
18¼in. (46cm.) high

出版

P.G. Dawson, C.B. Drover & D.W. Parkes, Early English Clocks, Woodbridge, 1982, pp. 180, 181 & 342, illustrated; pls. 243, 244, 492 & 493

展覽

The British Clockmaker's Heritage Exhibition, The Science Museum, London, 1952, cat. No. 89

拍品專文

William Knottesford was apprenticed to Henry Child in January 1657 and made Free in 1664. He took his son John as apprentice in 1681, became Master of the Clockmakers' Company in 1693 and died in 1698.
For a relatively short period of time circa 1665-75 table clocks lost their architectural or gabled pediments in favour of the flat-top cases and at the same time dials were being made far larger. Some cases were left flat, others had simple 'cushion' mouldings and a few makers, Knottesford being perhaps the most obvious, employed a bible-back moulded caddy containing a sliding key drawer.
The use of a seconds ring is also unusual and it meant that Knottesford had to make room for an additional wheel and pinion for the seconds arbor to turn in a clockwise direction. The replacement of the chapter ring is a mystery, no attempt has been made to cover up evidence of the placement for the original ring.