Lot 96

Daniel Quare

An exceptional, rare London George I pair-cased verge pocket watch made by one of the most eminent makers of his time

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Both cases of this pocket watch by Daniel Quare are undecorated and very puristic. The Champlevé dial with Roman hours and Arabic minutes is exquisite. Daniel Quare’s signature cartouche sits in the centre supported by the lion and the unicorn from the royal English coat of arms. The magnificent full plate movement is fire-gilt and decorated with applied floral elements. It also features Egyptian pillars and the balance cock is lavishly ornamented with foliage, birds of prey and a mascaron.

Daniel Quare, one of the most eminent makers was born around 1648 in Somersetshire. He joined the clockmakers company in 1671 and became a master in 1708. He died on March 21, 1724, in Croydon in Surrey.
In addition to his legendary clocks and watches Quare created various barometers and mathematical instruments and is credited with the invention of the rack striking mechanism. He came to the attention of the King in 1686, when Edward Barlow tried to patent a repeating mechanism for watches, and Quare, with the support of the clockmakers company, appealed his patent, saying he had been making repeaters since 1680. Repeating was important in the era before easily turned-on electric light, so you could know what time it was in the dark. Barlow's patent was refused, and the king, testing Barlow's and Quare's watches side by side, stated a preference for Quare's.
There are Quare clocks in the royal collections at Buckingham Palace and Hampton Court, as well as in important museums and further private collections.