Delander Gold Quarter Repeater Watch, London 1730

A very fine Daniel Delander gold pair case cylinder escapement quarter repeater watch, gilt fullplate movement with fusee, engraved and pierced balance cock with diamond endstone. Cylinder escapement. Plain round columns. Repeater complication for the hour and quarter on push of the stem. The fullplate signed Daniel Delander London with serial number 255. Gilt dust cover cap with floral motif lightly hand etched 255 verso. Gold dial with Roman numerals and outer Arabic minutes, signed to centre. The inner case pierced with scroll decoration, serial number 255 engraved on outside by stem. The outer case pierced with scroll decoration, with four fruit motifs. The rear depicting a repousse scene by Henry Manly depicting Heracles with his club and coat of Nemean lion, possibly with Hermes, signed Manly fecit. London, circa 1730. Diameter: 50 mm. Provenance: Terence Camerer Cuss, London, the collection of Dr Trevor Hyde, Sydney, acquired from the above in 1985. Other Notes: Daniel Delander (c.1678-1733) of the dial, Devereaux court in the middle temple (later moved to between the temple gates on Fleet Street) was bound as apprentice to Charles Halstead in 1692, becoming a freeman of the Clockmakers' Company in 1699. He is known to have worked for Thomas Tompion alongside producing his own work. Undoubtably Tompion's influence is evident in this example through Delander's use of the cylinder escapement, which Tompion invented in 1695. Delander was an admired watchmaker and clockmaker in his time, and was the first to produce a stopwatch with independent centre seconds. Examples of his work exist in the Science Museum, London, the Guildhall, London, the British Museum, London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The outer case is likely to be an early example of Henry Manly's work. Since Daniel Delander died in 1733, this piece is a late example that May have been completed by his Son, Nathaniel Delander.