CIRCA 1780

In the style of the small pagoda clocks such as that in the Palace Museum, Beijing (Lu Yangzhen, chief editor, Timepieces Collected by the Qing Emperors in the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1995, p. 170), the present table clock clearly shows European influences, particularly that of the London clockmaker Henry Borrell (see Yangzhen, op cit, p. 100). His style of engraved foliage, beaded borders and leaf mouldings to the foot are all found here. The most prolific centre of clockmaking in China was Guangzhou (Canton) which was the main foreign trading port; the Chinese craftsmen would have been familiar with the imported wares from Europe and the grander pieces by makers such as Borrell intended for the Imperial Court.
A Chinese table clock of similar scale and also with a 'nonsense' signature to the backplate, sold Christie's, London, 17 December 1975, lot 128.