$52,890
Flintlock Alarm Candle Clock, c. 1745, brass, crown wheel and verge escapement, chain drive fusee movement with alarm signed "V Des Combes Schleswig," with pierced balance bridge and silvered regulator dial, watch with roman numeral champleve dial with arcaded chapter ring, blued steel beetle and poker hands, encased in a rectangular box incscribed "Vincent Des Combes," with sides and top engraved with foliate leaf and scroll motifs, top with three divided sections, one of which contains a flintlock mechanism; the right side of the box contains a compartment covered by a hinged lid with decorated cartouche, a folding brass candle socket, and an additional lidded compartment to contain the watch key and a small pair of steel tongs; left side of the case composed of a square compartment with hinged lid, the corners of cast gilt fretwork, ht. 1 3/8, wd. 5 3/8, dp. 3 in. Provenance: Proceeds from the sale of the collections will be used by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia, exclusively for the acquisition of art and antiques to be exhibited in its art museums and historic buildings. N.B. This rare clock has only a small number of other known comparable counterparts; one is part of the collection of Snowshill Manor and Garden in Gloucestershire, dated c. 1740-1745, made of brass and inscribed "Pierre Morier London."
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2016-07-15
