Rare Gold Repousse Repeater Watch by John Ellicott Jr
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A rare gold repousse pair-cased repeater watch, maker John Ellicott Jnr English circa 1772 4.3 cm diameter, 5.7 cm high, 5.1 cm case diameter. A rare gold repousse pair-cased repeater watch, maker John Ellicott Jnr. English Circa 1772. Gold pair cased repeating watch, the inner case pierced and chased with an asymmetrical. design around the sides, mask on the side opposite the pendant, back chased with a figure of an exotic bird. Long pendant (incorporating the repeating push piece), stirrup bow. The outer case is pierced on the sides and around the bezel, with a repousse scene of. Achilles and the daughters of Lycomedes. Hall says that Achilles' mother, knowing her son was destined to be killed if he went to fight in the Trojan War, disguised him as a woman and entrusted him to King Lycomedes, in whose palace on the Isle of Scyros he lived among the king's daughters. Ulysses and other Greek chieftains were sent to fetch Achilles. They cunningly laid a heap of gifts before the girls: jewellery, clothes and other finery, but among them a sword, spear and shield. When a trumpet was sounded Achilles instinctively snatched up the weapons and thus betrayed his identity. See page 41 of the AHS Journal for March 2001 where a gold pair cased quarter repeating. watch by William Webster hallmarked 1770 with an almost identical repousse case chased by G. M. Moser, "the last and perhaps the greatest of the repousse artists"; could this case be by Moser?. White enamel dial with Roman hour numerals, Arabic minute numerals and blued steel beetle. and poker hands. The movement has a cylinder escapement. fusee and chain drive, repeating the half quarters on a steel bell housed inside the box. Small balance cock, the table finely pierced and engraved in an asymmetrical foliate design, centred with a large diamond endstone. The solid foot is chased, with typical inset in middle of rim. Plain round pillars, pierced fret forming pointer to silver regulator dial. The back plate and the dust cover are both signed "Ellicott London 6650". There is a lever protruding from under the dial between 5 and 6 o'clock which, when pushed, allows the watch to repeat without striking the bell: called a pulse-repeat. Reference: Britten, in discussing the Ellicott's, says: "The most eminent watch and clock maker of the family was John's son, John Junior, born in 1706, who established himself in business about 1728. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1738. Ellicott's productions were distinguished by excellent workmanship. He paid. great attention to the cylinder escapement and did much to bring it into use. His more cosily. watches were most lavishly decorated, the cases in repousse, and the dials enamelled on. gold. He was appointed clockmaker to the king, and died suddenly in 1772". Robert Edgecombe did a thesis at Trinity College, Oxford in 1980. Having seen a photograph of this watch he wrote to Norman in a letter dated 22/9/1980 and said: "(a) Sotheby's, 26/7/1971, lot 152. (b) the movement number and hallmark (1772-3) fit into Ellicott's slightly erratic sequence. I. have reference to, or have handled, 6393 (1771-2), 6794 {1773-4), 6820 (inner case 1772-3, outer case 1773-4). I think the case maker, PG, must be Peter Goigon who registered his. mark in 1763". He also thought the repousse could have been done by Manly or one of his pupils. Provenance: Purchased from Lawrence Gould, London on 17/12/1971 for 460 pounds. Restored by. Camerer Cuss & Co, London, on 1/12/1975, cost 69 pounds. Dimensions: 4.3 cm diameter, 5.7 cm high, 5.1 cm case diameter
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- Bezel - On a clock or watch, the bezel is the metal frame into which the watch or clock glass is fitted. In clocks, the bezel may include a hinge and a flange, in effect a door to the face of the clock. In jewellery the bezel is a band of metal with a projecting lip that holds the gemstone in its setting.
- 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. - Pair Cased - A pair cased watch is one with a double case. The movement is encased, and for additional protection this is fitted into an outer case.
- Foliate - Decorated with leaves or leaf-like forms.
- Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
- Embossed / Repousse - Embossing, also known as repousse, is the technique of decorating metal with raised designs, by pressing or beating out the design from the reverse side of the object.It is the opposite of chasing, where the decoration is applied from the front. An embossed or repoussed object may have chasing applied to finish off the design.
- 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. - Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.
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