Although the elaborately chased and engine-turned dial is signed Tho Boxell, Brighton there is ample evidence to support an attribution to the ornamental London clockmaker Thomas Cole.
The number 1594 stamped throughout the case places the clock c.1860 when Thomas Boxell at Brighton Observatory, 40 King's Road was among the top retailers used by Cole. A very similar clock, which sold at Christie's in 1971, is illustrated on the front cover of J.B. Hawkins' Thomas Cole & Victorian Clockmaking.
This well-preserved example, which stands 17in (43cm) high in a case of coromandel with kingwood crossbanding, came from Tyninghame House in East Lothian, the property of Sir Timothy and Lady Clifford. Sensibly estimated at £10,000-£15,000, it prompted plenty of interest within the dealing and collecting community before selling to an American collector, whose passion is unusual clocks, at £34,000 (plus 15 per cent buyer's premium).
