Calendar watch

Watchmaker: Thomas Alcock British

ca. 1650

Not on view

The concentric chapter rings of this unusual dial indicate the time of tides (presumably at London Bridge), mean solar time (I-XII), the age of the moon in its monthly cycle (1-29 1/2), and the day of the month (1-31). The moon's phases can be read though the circular aperture in the center disk. The February 1661 issue of Kingdoms Intelligencer, a newspaper published by the English parliament in opposition to the king, reported the loss of a comparable watch by Alcock.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Calendar watch
Maker: Watchmaker: Thomas Alcock (recorded working 1630, Clockmakers’ Company 1632, died before 1688)
Date: ca. 1650
Culture: British, London
Medium: Outer case: leather-covered silver with silver piqué work; Inner case: silver; Movement: gilt brass, steel, partly blued, and silver
Dimensions: Diam. 1-3/4 in. (4.4 cm)
Classification: Horology
Credit Line: Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Object Number: 17.190.1470
Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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