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Lot Essay
JOHN MOORE & SONS
This exceptional, exhibition quality clock was almost certainly produced by John Moore & Sons of Clerkenwell, London. The measurements of the present clock closely match those of the skeleton clock Moore & Sons made for the 1851 Great Exhibition and the basic frame style also matches the other giant size clock exhibited by Derek Roberts (‘The Art & Craft of the Clockmaker IV’, 1997). Two other clocks of this type were produced, one for the Tsar of Russia and another in an American collection (see Roberts, p. 118). A publicity brochure of 1877 states the number of ‘house’ clocks produced at over fifteen thousand, in correlation with the serial number of the present clock and those others recorded below.
John Moore & Sons was originally founded in 1791 as Handley & Moore, both of whom were apprenticed to John Thwaites, a renowned clock maker. After the death of Handley in 1824 the Moore family continued the business throughout the 19th Century. John Moore & Sons were known for the production of fine turret and skeleton clocks but also supplied machinery to ships and even lighthouses. As with their competition Thwaites & Reed, the vast majority of their production bear the names of other retailers.
These skeleton clocks however were clearly designed as a tour de force for the international exhibitions of the period. Clockmakers vied with each other to create increasingly sophisticated and enthralling pieces, of which this is a fine example. As high grade manufacturers, Moore & Sons exhibited at the Great Exhibitions of 1851 and 1862, winning a prize medal for clocks at the latter. The last of the clock making Moores, Henry James died in 1899.
Skeleton clocks recorded:
1 - The 1851 Great Exhibition clock - giant size, three-train, Aviva Art Collection, Norwich.
2 - Unnumbered, retailed by Losada - giant size, three-train, with Derek Roberts, 1997.
3 - No. 11403 - the present clock, giant size, three-train.
4 - No. 11477 - two-train, Sotheby’s, London, 24 July 1986.
5 - No. 11560 - two train, Langmaid Collection, Sotheby’s, New York, 6 April 2004, lot 35.
6 - No. 12742 - large, three-train, Bonhams, London, 9 July 2013, lot 14.
7 - No. 12852 - two-train, Sotheby’s, Belgravia, 27 November 1974.
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE
F. B. Royer-Collard, Skeleton Clocks, London, 1969, pp. 141-145
D. Roberts, British Skeleton Clocks, Woodbridge, 1987, pp. 115-118
This exceptional, exhibition quality clock was almost certainly produced by John Moore & Sons of Clerkenwell, London. The measurements of the present clock closely match those of the skeleton clock Moore & Sons made for the 1851 Great Exhibition and the basic frame style also matches the other giant size clock exhibited by Derek Roberts (‘The Art & Craft of the Clockmaker IV’, 1997). Two other clocks of this type were produced, one for the Tsar of Russia and another in an American collection (see Roberts, p. 118). A publicity brochure of 1877 states the number of ‘house’ clocks produced at over fifteen thousand, in correlation with the serial number of the present clock and those others recorded below.
John Moore & Sons was originally founded in 1791 as Handley & Moore, both of whom were apprenticed to John Thwaites, a renowned clock maker. After the death of Handley in 1824 the Moore family continued the business throughout the 19th Century. John Moore & Sons were known for the production of fine turret and skeleton clocks but also supplied machinery to ships and even lighthouses. As with their competition Thwaites & Reed, the vast majority of their production bear the names of other retailers.
These skeleton clocks however were clearly designed as a tour de force for the international exhibitions of the period. Clockmakers vied with each other to create increasingly sophisticated and enthralling pieces, of which this is a fine example. As high grade manufacturers, Moore & Sons exhibited at the Great Exhibitions of 1851 and 1862, winning a prize medal for clocks at the latter. The last of the clock making Moores, Henry James died in 1899.
Skeleton clocks recorded:
1 - The 1851 Great Exhibition clock - giant size, three-train, Aviva Art Collection, Norwich.
2 - Unnumbered, retailed by Losada - giant size, three-train, with Derek Roberts, 1997.
3 - No. 11403 - the present clock, giant size, three-train.
4 - No. 11477 - two-train, Sotheby’s, London, 24 July 1986.
5 - No. 11560 - two train, Langmaid Collection, Sotheby’s, New York, 6 April 2004, lot 35.
6 - No. 12742 - large, three-train, Bonhams, London, 9 July 2013, lot 14.
7 - No. 12852 - two-train, Sotheby’s, Belgravia, 27 November 1974.
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE
F. B. Royer-Collard, Skeleton Clocks, London, 1969, pp. 141-145
D. Roberts, British Skeleton Clocks, Woodbridge, 1987, pp. 115-118