An early 19th century 18ct gold full hunter watch, fusee lever movement with compensated three-arm balance, signed and numbered gilt metal dust cap, enamel dial with black painted Roman numerals and outer five minuted divisions, subsidiary seconds at 6, gilt spade hands, polished and engine turned case hinged to the front with reeded band, 'Imc' for McCabe himself. Dial and dust cap signed 'Jas McCABE, Royal exchange, London' and numbered 17158. The case hallmarked London 1838 and stamped S5. Provenance: Purchased 1979. Other Notes: According to P.E Hackamack in 'James McCabe' Ah Voix (1977), pages 312-316, all McCabe's highest quality watches with serial numbers greater than 8000 and stamped 'Imc' on the front plate. From 1830 the marks on the plate are repeated on the inside of the back plate and from 1838, the highest quality McCabe watches are S5 in addition to the marks on the case, the front plate and the inside of the back plate.
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- Hunter - A hunter pocket watch is the type where the case includes a spring-hinged circular metal lid or cover, that closes over the glass face of the watch, protecting it from dust, scratches and other damage or debris. The majority of antique and vintage hunter-case watches have the lid-hinges at the 9 o?clock position, suiting the right handed user.
- Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.
- Fusee - The fusee movement was used in clocks and pocket watches from the mid 17th century. The fusee is a cone shaped drum within the works that is linked to the barrel of the spring, usually by a length of chain.
As the mainspring loses its tension over time, the cone shaped barrel compensates for this by increasing the tension, by pulling the mainspring tighter, thus ensuring the time remains constant.
Use of the fusee in clocks was superseded by the "going barrel" in the mid 19th century and for pocket watches at the beginning of the 19th century.
The fusee continued to be used in marine chronometers until the 1970s.
- Back Plate - On many types of clocks, the movement operates between two plates, usually made of brass, one at the back, and the other at the front, which forms a mount for the dial.
On English bracket, mantle and table clocks the backplate was often visible through a glass door or panel from the late 17th century, and could be profusely engraved with scrolling decorations, flowers, foliage, birds, and figures. The engraving could also include the maker?s name.
The amount of engraving reduced and became simpler as the 18th century progressed, and by 1800, had been reduced to a border, often with the maker's name in the centre. By the early 1800s all decoration had ceased, and only the maker's name was added, and by the Victorian era, most bracket, mantle and table clocks had no engraving.
- Engine Turned - Engine turning is a decorative technique used on metal surfaces to create intricate curving or geometric pattern. The process involves cutting a series of lines into the surface of the metal using a rose engine or decoration lathe which rotates the metal as it cuts, allowing the operator to create a repeating pattern that covers the entire surface. The resulting surface has a shimmering, reflective quality that is often described as "engine turned." Where an engine turned item has been enamelled, the term used to describe the decoration is usually guilloche.
Engine turning was originally developed to decorate metal objects such as firearms, scientific instruments, and other metal objects that required precise and elegant design.
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