James Ferguson Cole, London SOLD

SOLD

Fine Phase I Type I gilt-brass carriage timepiece with engine turned dial. Circa 1830

Case

Gilt brass engine turned case with facetted Thomas Cole handle, mushroom finials and Doric columns. Finely milled bezel with convex glass to the engine turned front with a gold mount engraved ‘hands’. Standing on facetted feet with a bronzed rear opening cover to the rear with shuttered winding cover. Engine turning to the case and the silver dial being the speciality of James Ferguson Cole as evidenced on the dials of the silver humpback clocks.

Dial

Stunning silver engine turned dial with engraved Roman hour numerals and inset subsidiary seconds dial. Breguet hands of blued steel.

Movement

Eight day James Cole bespoke movement designed to fit in a confined space. Signed, James F. Cole, No. 1 Maddox St., Regent Street to the gilt rear pinned backplate. Going barrel with blued steel work, platform lever escapement with bi metal compensated balance and blued steel overcoil balance spring. The design of the movement is purely James Cole the mounting of the mainspring as used in the humpback clocks,

The mainspring is signed and dated Richard Smith 5 Queen Street Clerkenwell May 20th, 1830. Smith appears in the Vulliamy archives at this address in Volume III. This volume lists the Vulliamy sales between 1809 and 1814, Smith being the only Clock Spring Maker who supplied his firm.

Height 5 inches.

This clock was purchased by John Hawkins father in Beauchamp Place about 1956 for 100gns and sold to Colonel Quill when he visited them at Mystole Park, Chartham, Kent in 1958. For further reading on the family and clocks of James Ferguson Cole and Thomas Cole see ‘The Hawkins Pictorial Survey of Cole Clocks’. Part I and Part II.