.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
This box is a wonderful example of the luxurious “toys” created by James Cox, the most celebrated maker of precious elaborate mechanical objects in the 18th century. Its technical complexity and jeweled design indicate it was likely made for export to China, where the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–1795) and his court had a great appetite for European clocks, watches, and automata. From the 16th century, Western mechanical clocks were used as diplomatic gifts to open up trade with China—an approach begun by Jesuit Matteo Ricci and later continued on a large scale by the British East India Company. By the mid-18th century, makers such as James Cox and Timothy Williamson were creating spectacular mechanical wonders specifically for the Chinese market. Cox’s own son, John Henry Cox, established a trading firm in Canton in the 1780s to meet the booming demand.
James Cox (c.1723–1800) trained as a goldsmith and set himself up as a producer of “curious wares” in gold, silver, tortoiseshell, enamel, and precious stones. After early bankruptcy, he rebuilt his business with financial backing and, by the 1760s–70s, claimed to oversee "eight hundred to one thousand workmen” making musical clocks, automata, agate cabinets, snuffboxes, and other luxurious objects. Between 1766 and 1772 he exported an enormous £750,000 worth of goods, primarily to China, India, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire. By 1772, however, Cox faced serious financial trouble due to overproduction and an East India Company embargo on shipments to China. To raise money, he auctioned stock at Christie’s and created a public exhibition known as Cox’s Museum, showcasing his extravagant mechanical masterpieces and attracting huge crowds. He attempted to dispose of the collection through a lottery, but poor ticket sales and the collapse of consistent Chinese trade led to another bankruptcy in 1778. Additional sales followed, including the final dispersal of remaining Canton stock in 1792. Despite these setbacks, Cox and his sons resumed limited business, exporting watches, mostly Swiss-made, to China. Cox worked at Shoe Lane until 1795 and died in 1800.
This automaton box is similar to one in the Gilbert Collection, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, (LOAN:GILBERT.384-2008) illustrated in Charles Truman, The Gilbert Collection of Gold Boxes, 1991, no. 105 pp. 307-08. Both boxes feature a watch, flanked by regulator and open balance, and the reverse with a painted landscape with rotating panels, however the present lot features a dial signed by James Cox, while the box in the Gilbert Collection is unsigned and unmarked.
James Cox (c.1723–1800) trained as a goldsmith and set himself up as a producer of “curious wares” in gold, silver, tortoiseshell, enamel, and precious stones. After early bankruptcy, he rebuilt his business with financial backing and, by the 1760s–70s, claimed to oversee "eight hundred to one thousand workmen” making musical clocks, automata, agate cabinets, snuffboxes, and other luxurious objects. Between 1766 and 1772 he exported an enormous £750,000 worth of goods, primarily to China, India, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire. By 1772, however, Cox faced serious financial trouble due to overproduction and an East India Company embargo on shipments to China. To raise money, he auctioned stock at Christie’s and created a public exhibition known as Cox’s Museum, showcasing his extravagant mechanical masterpieces and attracting huge crowds. He attempted to dispose of the collection through a lottery, but poor ticket sales and the collapse of consistent Chinese trade led to another bankruptcy in 1778. Additional sales followed, including the final dispersal of remaining Canton stock in 1792. Despite these setbacks, Cox and his sons resumed limited business, exporting watches, mostly Swiss-made, to China. Cox worked at Shoe Lane until 1795 and died in 1800.
This automaton box is similar to one in the Gilbert Collection, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, (LOAN:GILBERT.384-2008) illustrated in Charles Truman, The Gilbert Collection of Gold Boxes, 1991, no. 105 pp. 307-08. Both boxes feature a watch, flanked by regulator and open balance, and the reverse with a painted landscape with rotating panels, however the present lot features a dial signed by James Cox, while the box in the Gilbert Collection is unsigned and unmarked.