A John Finch verge escapement quarter repeating triple case watch, the gilt fullplate movement with fusee, engraved and pierced balance cock. Verge escapement. Quarter repeating mechanism at press of stem. Plain round columns. The fullplate signed Jn Finch London. The inner case with raised and lightly engraved pedestal for the movement, 'Eg' stamped under the bell. The outside of the inner case with finely pierced and engraved foliate pattern to sides culminating in a green man portrait at bottom. The silver dial with Roman chapter ring and outer Arabic ring for the minutes, the centre decorated with the Royal coat of arms, beetle and poker hands. The second case with scene possibly depicting Psyche and cupid within a classical garden, set within a scroll border with pierced and engraved floral fretwork with crimson silk underneath. The final shagreen case with engraved silver border at rear edge, remnants of pique riveting to bezel. London, circa 1690. Diameter: 2.56 in. Provenance: Sotheby's, 7th December 1983, the collection of Dr Trevor Hyde, Sydney, acquired from the above. Other Notes: John Finch (circa 1654-1711) is known to have been bound to Nathaniel barrow as apprentice in 1668. He later became a freeman of the Clockmakers' Company in 1675. It is likely that he practised his trade from the vicinity of St. Edmund's, on Lombard Street. Finch's ability was recognised in him being granted master of the Clockmakers' Company in 1706 - two years after Tompion, and two years before Daniel Quare.
- Shagreen - Shagreen is the untanned smoothly pebbled textured skins of rays, sharks or dogfish. In finishing, it is dyed, mostly green, but the colour often fades to a cream colour. Shagreen was a popular material in Europe during the Art Deco era, when designers sought to mould the French tradition of luxury with exotic and precious materials. Most collectable items made from shagreen are smaller objects, like glasses cases, dagger and sword hilts, dressing accessories, boxes and picture frames.
- 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.
- Cupid Motif - The Cupid motif, which features the Roman god of love and desire, Cupid, was a popular decorative element in classical ornamentation. Cupid was often depicted as a winged, naked baby with a bow and arrow, and was often used to symbolize love and desire.
In classical art and architecture, Cupid motifs were often used as decorative elements on furniture, such as on the legs of chairs and tables, as well as on architectural elements such as friezes and pediments. They were also used as decorative elements in frescoes, mosaics, and other forms of art.
During the Renaissance, Cupid motifs were often incorporated into the decoration of palaces, churches and other grand buildings, as they were seen as symbols of love and fertility. Cupid motifs were also commonly used in the decorative arts of the Baroque period, often appearing in the form of putti, which are small winged cherub figures.
In addition to their decorative use, Cupid motifs were also believed to hold symbolic meaning, as they were thought to evoke feelings of love, desire, and fertility.
- Pique Work - A decorative technique used on jewellery and small decorative objects in which designs are created by inlaying small gold or silver studs and stips into tortoiseshell. The art reached its highest point in 17th- and 18th-century France, particularly for the decoration of small tortoiseshell articles such as combs, patch boxes, and snuffboxes.
- Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.
- 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.
- Chapter Ring - A separate metal plate on the face of a clock, on which the numerals for the hours and sometimes parts of the hours, are displayed, usually wheel shaped and sitting on top of the dial plate. The chapter ring is often a feature of the clock and can be silvered or enamelled to stand as a contrast to its background. The hours are usually shown in Roman numerals, although in the late 19th and earlt 20th century, Arabic numerals became fashionable.
- 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.
- 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.
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