Miniature longcase clock with calendar

Firm of Quare and Horseman|Daniel Quare|Stephen Horseman

ca. 1720–25 · Case: walnut and oak veneered with walnut and figured walnut; Dial: gilded and silvered brass; Movement: gilded brass, steel · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Miniature longcase clocks are rarities: this one, which runs for a month on a single winding, is rarer still. The case barely accommodates the exceptionally heavy weights required by the long duration of the clock, and the door to the trunk had to be hollowed out to provide room for their free descent. The hour hand is a modern replacement. Daniel Quare (1649–1724), a Quaker probably born somewhere is Somerset, England, was admitted to the London Clockmakers’ Company in 1671. Described as a “great clockmaker” at the time of his admission, he was probably second only to Thomas Tompion among his contemporaries. Steven Horseman (d. 1740) became Quare’s apprentice in 1701 and his partner in 1718.

Artist

Firm of Quare and Horseman|Daniel Quare|Stephen Horseman

Date

ca. 1720–25

Medium

Case: walnut and oak veneered with walnut and figured walnut; Dial: gilded and silvered brass; Movement: gilded brass, steel

Culture

British, London

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Gift of Irwin Untermyer, 1964