Charles Francis Annesley Voysey (1857 - 1914)

ebony, the gilt top above four tapering legs with upper ivory banding, the face inlaid in ivory with the dial reading TEMPUS FUGIT

The Studio, vol. 7 (May 1896), p. 216
John Brandon-Jones, C.F.A Voysey: Architect and Designer, London, 1978, p. 84
Duncan Simspon, C.F.A. Voysey: An Architect of Individuality, London, 1979
Wendy Hitchmough, CFA Voysey, London, 2004, p. 51

An important piece and a rare example of this model. Piece has a crack running through the face, which has been restored but remains visible. Minor old marks and scratches and some minor losses, chipping and bruising to the surface. One bone band beginning to separate. Rear door somewhat warped. Clock movement neither tested nor guaranteed. Repolished. Elegant and ready for display. Two images of the piece before restoration are available upon request, as is a list of work carried out by Arlington Conservation during the pieces restoration. Also available is a copy of a photograph of what appears to be this piece and the accompanying text detailing Francis Walter Galpin, presumably from the National Archives. Variations between the spire finial in the image and on the piece itself suggests that this has been replaced.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This clock or, strictly speaking, timepiece, as the movement does not strike, is an important and welcome addition to the few known works by C.F.A. Voysey.

Voysey, educated at Dulwich College, was a prolific architect and designer in the Arts and Crafts style. An undistinguished academic at college, Voysey later claimed he became an architect because it was 'the only profession for which one did not need to pass any examinations.' Beginning his career in 1881, he first established himself as a designer of furniture, textiles and wallpapers. He began to win building commissions in 1890 and quickly earned a reputation of being a master of artistic cottages and modern country houses.
Although Voysey practiced mainly in Britain, his design principles were admired and emulated abroad. He paid meticulous attention to detail, designing every aspect of a project, down to the door hinges. Voysey regularly exhibited watercolour elevations of his building projects, furniture, and decorative designs at the Royal Academy and is celebrated today as one of the leading British designers of the turn of the twentieth Century.

Voysey first designed a clock of this form with a decorated face for his own home, The Orchard in Chorleywood, in 1895. It is shown in a photograph of the hallway in Hitchmough (op. cit., p. 128). The original design for this, now in the collection of the R.I.B.A., is illustrated in Simpson (op.cit., p. 57, fig. 22), and the clock itself is now in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. The design shows that the £1.10s cost of the softwood case was paid to a Mr F. Cootes.

The architectural form of the piece demonstrates Voysey's belief in simplicity of decoration without which, he said, 'no true richness is possible'. It can be compared to the clock tower he designed over the stable entrance at the Sturges house near Puttenham (1896), his unexecuted 1889 design for a Tower House (Simpson, pl. 4) and the house he built for Mrs Forster at 14 South Parade, Bedford Park, Chiswick in 1891 (Simpson, pl. 6), all of which share the bold upright facia under an extended capped roof of the current lot.

In common with a number of Voysey's designs, which he re-used for later commissions with or without minor amendments, a limited number of other versions were created. Another decorated example is in the Frances and Sidney Lewis Collection at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia, two examples in oak are known, and a few are known to have been produced in aluminium by W.H. Tingley, one of which was shown at the 1903 Arts and Crafts Exhibition. However, the current lot is the only known example of this form to have appeared in ebony and gilt.

Intriguingly, the current case is stamped with a registration design number. Dated the 9^th November 1897 in the Public Records Office, this number is annotated 'Francis Walter Galpin, 81 Farringdon Road, E.C., Jeweller and Silversmith'. Galpins' connection with the work remains tantalisingly elusive .