Sir Walter Scott Memorial Skeleton Clock

Skillfully designed in homage to the grand Sir Walter Scott Memorial in Edinburgh, Scotland, this Victorian brass skeleton clock is a wonderful specimen of English clockmaking. The clock keeps the time with a highly accurate eight-day two-train chain fusée mechanism, while a hammer strike on a coil gong marks the hour. As impressive visually as it is mechanically, the clock indicates the time on a pierced, engraved and silvered chapter ring, while the ormolu figure of Sir Walter Scott and his dog Maida reside below. It is set upon its wooden base beneath its original glass dome.

A Scottish historian, novelist and poet, Sir Walter Scott’s works are hailed as classics of the English literary tradition. He is considered the greatest practitioner of the historical novel and is best remembered for The Waverly Novels, including Rob Roy and Ivanhoe. His memorial was erected in his hometown of Edinburgh in 1838, six years after Scott’s death, and it stands as the second-largest monument to a writer in the world.

Skeleton clocks are among the most exceptional and intriguing timepieces ever made and were designed to display as much of the working mechanism as possible. William F. Evans of Handsworth, Birmingham, was one of the most respected makers of skeleton clocks, and the firm produced its first Scott Memorial skeleton clock for London's Great Exhibition of 1851.

Two similar Scott Memorial skeleton clocks are featured in Skeleton Clocks, Britain 1800-1914 by Derek Roberts (p. 143, fig.3/56/a/b). Those timepieces were created by William Frederick Evans of Handsworth, Birmingham.

Circa 1875

16 1/8" wide x 11 7/8" deep x 26 1/2" high