Clock-watch 1735 - 1785

Curator: Look at this “Clock-watch” from between 1735 and 1785, crafted by the Firm of Markham, Marwick, and Perigal. Editor: Whoa, what a trip! The watch, that circularity, all that gilded fuss… Feels like baroque on steroids, almost dizzying! Curator: I’d say. The combination of gold and metal gives it such an opulent weight. Think of it as a kind of baroque sculpture, miniature and portable, ticking away inside someone’s pocket. Editor: That ornamental style—all the delicate flourishes—isn't just about showing off wealth, right? It seems to echo a certain confidence of an age, the very idea of keeping track of time turning into an artistic statement, maybe even a reflection of man's dominion over nature. Curator: Precisely! The gold is the status symbol, of course, but the sheer intricacy points to time as treasure itself. Think about what time symbolizes here. Life? Wealth? Certainly power. The circular face and hands might reflect cyclical, endless concepts of time, eternity even, if that’s not a complete stretch... Editor: Nah, doesn’t stretch things at all. Those arrow markers though, very definite and sharp, maybe reflecting a growing obsession with controlling the uncontrollable – time itself! The dark encasing is a striking touch; I see almost a constricting barrier around the airy freedom the numbers project. Makes me think about the anxiety buried under all that finery. Curator: That interplay between light and shadow, constraint and freedom is fascinating here, the surface so dazzling, the interior a mystery… This isn't just a watch. It is a little cosmos in your pocket, where precision meets mortality. Editor: Indeed. The watch transforms from time-teller to a potent meditation device; the beauty disguising profound thoughts on life's ticking passage. What a find, a moment held perfectly!