AN EXCEPTIONALLY FINE SILVER AND TORTOISESHELL PAIR CASED TWO-TRAIN ALARM VERGE WATCH
CIRCA 1685
AN EXCEPTIONALLY FINE SILVER AND TORTOISESHELL PAIR CASED TWO-TRAIN ALARM VERGE WATCH
CIRCA 1685 silver, tortoiseshell diameter 54 mm , • Movement: gilded full plate, verge escapement, decoratively pierced and engraved balance cock, blued steel stop-work for alarm visible to the backplate, fusee and chain, tulip pillars, standing barrel for alarm train with decorative pierced engraving • movement signed Markwick London
• Dial: silver champlevé, Roman numerals, inner quarter hour divisions, arrow-head pointer mounted on the revolving centre to indicate hours, central alarm disc with central blued steel turned hand
• Case: inner fully decorated silver case, the centre of the case back with an urn surmounted by a bird and surrounded by further birds and scrolling foliage, the pierced band similarly decorated, an engraved flower head beneath the plain ring pendant, bezel with engraved stylised floral decoration, inner case with maker’s mark WF incuse (probably William Finch) and numbered 3 , tortoiseshell outer case with symmetrically arranged pierced silver roundels, interspersed with silver pin work, the centre of the outer back with silver inlaid decoration depicting cupid with his bow to the centre, flying birds to the four corners and surrounded by large flower headsJames Markwick, London, Estimate
10,000 - 18,000 GBP
, Sold
12,500 GBP
, AN EXCEPTIONALLY FINE SILVER AND TORTOISESHELL PAIR CASED TWO-TRAIN ALARM VERGE WATCH
CIRCA 1685 silver, tortoiseshell diameter 54 mm , • Movement: gilded full plate, verge escapement, decoratively pierced and engraved balance cock, blued steel stop-work for alarm visible to the backplate, fusee and chain, tulip pillars, standing barrel for alarm train with decorative pierced engraving • movement signed Markwick London
• Dial: silver champlevé, Roman numerals, inner quarter hour divisions, arrow-head pointer mounted on the revolving centre to indicate hours, central alarm disc with central blued steel turned hand
• Case: inner fully decorated silver case, the centre of the case back with an urn surmounted by a bird and surrounded by further birds and scrolling foliage, the pierced band similarly decorated, an engraved flower head beneath the plain ring pendant, bezel with engraved stylised floral decoration, inner case with maker’s mark WF incuse (probably William Finch) and numbered 3 , tortoiseshell outer case with symmetrically arranged pierced silver roundels, interspersed with silver pin work, the centre of the outer back with silver inlaid decoration depicting cupid with his bow to the centre, flying birds to the four corners and surrounded by large flower heads, Sotheby's London, 26 February, 1998, lot 37, Terrence Camerer Cuss, The English Watch 1585-1970 , 2009, p. 119, pl. 56
T.P. & T.A. Camerer Cuss, The Camerer Cuss Book of Antique Watches, 1976, p. 79, pl. 30 and col. pl. 3, This superb watch is of the highest quality and is in outstanding condition. It is interesting to compare the engraving of the inner case back of this watch to that of lot
12 by Daniel Quare. Stylistically the decoration of these two watches is similar and, like the Quare, the inspiration for the case’s decoration would have come from a contemporary Renaissance-inspired design. The outer case back has superb inlaid silver work and the Cupid to its centre is charmingly rendered, with the silver roundels allowing for sound emission.
The arrow-head pointer mounted to the central disc indicates the time of day. The central blued-steel hand is for alarm setting and can be moved to the desired position on the Arabic numeral ring, the alarm will then sound when it points to the 12 o’clock Roman numeral.
James Markwick senior was apprenticed to Edward Gilpin in 1656 and freed in August 1666. He seems to have had a rather fractious relationship with the Clockmakers’ Company, being fined in 1677 for abuse of the Master and repeatedly fined for irregular attendance of the Clockmakers’ Court. His son, also called James, was made free of the Clockmakers’ Company by patrimony in April 1692. See: Brian Loomes, The Early Clockmakers of Great Britain , 1981, p. 375. James junior started the partnership Markwick Markham with his son-inlaw, Robert Markham, and they became some of the leading watchmakers of their day.
