92nd Auction
2015/11/14
Lot 514
William Clark, York, Movement No. 275, 48 mm, 103 g, circa 1778
A precious pair-cased gold enamel pocket watch with important miniature enamel painting attributed to William Hopkins Craft
Case: outer case - 22k gold, decorated with an oval miniature of a young lady in an idealised landscape with a dog, surrounded by a white enamelled pearl border and translucent cobalt blue enamel on an engine-turned ground, thumbpiece set with a half pearl, à goutte, large lateral hinge. Inner case - 22K gold, polished, case maker's punch mark "RP". Dial: enamel, radial Roman hours, Louis XVI hands. Movm.: full plate movement, keywind, firegilt, applied florally engraved ornaments, signed, chain/fusee, square baluster pillars, three-arm steel balance, florally engraved, pierced balance cock.
William Hopkins Craft was born around 1730 in Tottenham in England. Before starting to work for David Rhodes at Wedgewood and Bentley in 1768, he presumably worked in Paris as an emailleur. In 1768/69 Craft worked on the famous neoclassical style "First Day‘s" vases Wedgewood produced to commemorate the opening of their new factory in Etruria in Staffordshire. In 1770 Craft left Wedgewood and devoted himself exclusively to enamel painting. He was an excellent painter of miniature portraits; he also decorated a small number of watch cases and chatelaines, but more often painted large enamel portraits such as that of Sir Joshua Reynolds (1786) in the Ashmolean Museum and that of Sir William Hamilton (1802) in the British Museum. Both are approximately 17 cm high. Craft also painted allegories and even combined portrait painting with allegory - the most famous example being the marvellous pair of portraits of King George III and Queen Charlotte dating from 1773 in the British Museum. George III is shown as "George III as Lord of the Sea trampling America" and Queen Charlotte is shown as Demeter/Ceres.
Craft counted members of the royal family, politicians and scientists amongst his clientele. From 1774 and 1795 he exhibited no less than 17 enamel paintings at te Royal Academy.
A precious pair-cased gold enamel pocket watch with important miniature enamel painting attributed to William Hopkins Craft
Case: outer case - 22k gold, decorated with an oval miniature of a young lady in an idealised landscape with a dog, surrounded by a white enamelled pearl border and translucent cobalt blue enamel on an engine-turned ground, thumbpiece set with a half pearl, à goutte, large lateral hinge. Inner case - 22K gold, polished, case maker's punch mark "RP". Dial: enamel, radial Roman hours, Louis XVI hands. Movm.: full plate movement, keywind, firegilt, applied florally engraved ornaments, signed, chain/fusee, square baluster pillars, three-arm steel balance, florally engraved, pierced balance cock.
William Hopkins Craft was born around 1730 in Tottenham in England. Before starting to work for David Rhodes at Wedgewood and Bentley in 1768, he presumably worked in Paris as an emailleur. In 1768/69 Craft worked on the famous neoclassical style "First Day‘s" vases Wedgewood produced to commemorate the opening of their new factory in Etruria in Staffordshire. In 1770 Craft left Wedgewood and devoted himself exclusively to enamel painting. He was an excellent painter of miniature portraits; he also decorated a small number of watch cases and chatelaines, but more often painted large enamel portraits such as that of Sir Joshua Reynolds (1786) in the Ashmolean Museum and that of Sir William Hamilton (1802) in the British Museum. Both are approximately 17 cm high. Craft also painted allegories and even combined portrait painting with allegory - the most famous example being the marvellous pair of portraits of King George III and Queen Charlotte dating from 1773 in the British Museum. George III is shown as "George III as Lord of the Sea trampling America" and Queen Charlotte is shown as Demeter/Ceres.
Craft counted members of the royal family, politicians and scientists amongst his clientele. From 1774 and 1795 he exhibited no less than 17 enamel paintings at te Royal Academy.
Sold
estimated
8.900—12.000 €
Price realized
12.400 €