Consular Style Cased Gold Pocket Watch by William Sellers

A consular style cased gold pocket watch, maker William Sellers…
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A consular style cased gold pocket watch, maker William Sellers English circa 1705 4 cm diameter, 5.3 cm case diameter, 5.5 cm case hight. A consular style cased gold pocket watch, maker William Sellers. English Circa 1705. Gold (22 carat) case, the bezel hinging at 9 o'clock and the movement at 12. o'clock. The case is quite plain, bearing the case-maker's mark "E.B" surmounted by a fleur-de-lys (possibly for Edw. Bennett, listed Jackson 1727-1729). Short plain pendant and stirrup bow. White enamel dial, black Roman hour numerals, black Arabic minute numerals, blued steel. beetle and poker hands. The movement has a verge escapement, fusee and chain drive, winged balance cock, the. table pierced and engraved with a symmetrical foliate pattern centred with a shell, mask near the foot, the foot itself very broad and nicely pierced and engraved. Pierced fret indicates numbers on silver regulator dial. Signed on the back plate "Wm. Sellers London". The pillars are quite rare, with a silver head on each under an arch (as in the break-arch. bracket clocks), with an ornate fusee stop. Reference: The movement of this watch may be as early as 1705, as William Sellers (Sellars} is listed in Britten as being apprenticed in 1682, free of the Clockmakers Company in 1691, Assistant in 1724 and ceased work in 1740. The case bears a London hallmark for 1742, so it would seem that the watch was re-cased in 1742, and a new enamel dial added. The dial is typical of the style of that period, similar ones being used by makers such as Graham and Ellicott. Provenance: Purchased by Norman Dean from Lawrence Gould in December 1971 for 280 pounds. Restored by Camerer Cuss & Co in December 1975 for 37 pounds. Dimensions: 4 cm diameter, 5.3 cm case diameter, 5.5 cm case hight

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  • Manner of .... / Style of ..... - A cataloguing term where the item, in the opinion of the cataloguer is a work in the style of the artist, craftsman or designer, possibly of a later period.
  • 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.
  • Carat - A carat (abbreviated "ct") is a unit of measurement used to describe the weight of a diamond or other gemstone, and separately is a unit of measurement used to describe the weight of precious metals such as gold,.

    For gemstones, one carat is equal to 0.2 grams or 200 milligrams. The weight of a diamond is one of the Four Cs (along with cut, colour, and clarity) that are used to determine a diamond's value.

    It is important to note that a diamond's weight does not necessarily correspond to its size. A diamond's cut, which affects how well it reflects light, can make a diamond of a lower weight appear larger than a diamond of a higher weight. Additionally, the carat is not the only factor to determine the value of a diamond, other factors such as clarity, colour and cut are important too.

    In the gold industry, the purity of gold is measured in carats (abbreviated "ct"), with 24 karats being pure gold and lower carat numbers indicating a lower purity level. So, for example, 18 carat gold is 18/24 or 75% pure gold, and 12 carat gold is 12/24 or 50% pure gold.
  • 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.
  • Foliate - Decorated with leaves or leaf-like forms.
  • Verge Escapement - A verge escapement is an early mechanical escapement used in clocks and other timekeeping devices. It is an early form of the escapement mechanism, which is used to regulate the movement of the hands of a clock or watch. The verge escapement consists of a vertical shaft called the verge, which is mounted on the clock's main plate. Attached to the verge are two pallets, which engage with the teeth of the escape wheel. As the escape wheel turns, the pallets alternately lock and release it, allowing the movement of the clock to be regulated. The verge escapement was widely used in early mechanical clocks, but it was eventually replaced by the more accurate and reliable anchor escapement.
  • 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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