DANIEL QUARE & STEPHEN HORSEMAN, LONDON, NO. 246. CIRCA 1720

細節

A George I small ebony striking bracket clock, in the style of George Graham
Daniel Quare & Stephen Horseman, London, No. 246. Circa 1720
The case with brass handle to the inverted bell top, finely pierced later ebony sound frets to the sides and to the front door with foliate cast gilt-metal escutcheon, the 5 x 5½ in. sq. dial signed Dan: Quare Ste: Horseman London on a silvered plaque flanked by subsidiary silvered rings for strike/silent and pendulum regulation, the silvered Roman and Arabic chapter ring with half hour and half quarter hour markers, pierced blued steel hands, the matted centre with mock pendulum and calendar apertures, the diminuitive movement with rectangular brass plates secured by six ringed baluster pillars (five pinned and centre pillar latched), pivoted verge escapement with rise-and-fall regulation arm across the top of the backplate, twin fusees (wire lines), the repeat system with foliate engraved spring sub-barrel planted on the backplate activating a small bell for the quarters and larger bell for the hours, the backplate signed Dan: Quare Ste: Horseman London. 246 within a foliate cartouche centred by an engraved mask supporting a basket of flowers issuing garlands of flowers held at the sides by winged putti, all amongst finely engraved scrolling foliage and within a wheatear-engraved border with similarly engraved movement securing brackets to the case
12½ in. (32 cm.) high to hilt of handle

注意事項

VAT rate of 5% is payable on hammer price plus buyer's premium.

拍品專文

Quare, Daniel, London. Born circa 1647/48 in Somerset, he became a Brother in the Clockmakers' Company in 1671 (described as 'a Great Clockmaker'), Assistant in 1700, Warden from 1705, Master in 1708 and attended until his death in 1724.

One of England's greatest clockmakers from the 'golden age' of English clockmaking, Daniel Quare was a Quaker by religion. Consequently he was unable to swear oaths and would have been Royal Clockamker but for his inabilityto swear the necessary Oath of Allegiance. Even so, he had free access to the Palace by the back stairs.

Quare was undoubtedly highly successful and the measure of this success may be seen from the list of guests at his daughter Ann's wedding in 1705, which included the Envoys from Florence, Hanover, Venice, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark and Prussia. The weddings of a further son and daughter in 1712 added the Early of Orrery, the Duke of Argyll and other noble dignitaries to the guest list, whilst in 1715 the Prince and Princess of Wales only failed to attend his daughter Elizabeth's wedding because of an Act of Parliament forbidding them from attending Quaker meetings - nonetheless the Princess attended the wedding banquet. For a fuller account of Quare's career see Cedric Jagger Royal Clocks, London, 1983, pp. 46-49.

Quare took Stephen Horseman as an apprentice in January 1701 and Horseman was free in September 1709. Some time after, probably circa 1718, the entered into partnership. Quare died in 1724 but the business continued under the name Quare and Horseman as previously, with the serial numbers on clocks and watches continuing as if nothing had changed. Horseman, however, proved not to be as successful a businessman and was made bankrupt in 1733.