Legacy

Like many wealthy gentlemen of the Gilded Age who had the time and money to collect aesthetic objets d’art, half-brothers Thomas and Frederick Proctor traveled extensively, amassing a choice collection of antique timepieces during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. So explains Mary Murray, head of curatorial and exhibitions at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute (MWPAI) in Utica, New York, where a selection of those pieces is on display in the exhibit “Jewels of Time: Watches from the Proctor Collection.”

The Proctors owned extensive property and businesses in Utica, and along with their wives, they supported many charitable and community efforts, as well as founding the MWPAI. Seeking out prime examples of the watchmaking craft in both Europe and the United States, each brother built up a separate collection, which merged into a single gift to the institute. The watches — 300 in all — date from the 16th century through the early 20th century, and the sheer size of the collection makes it noteworthy. The exhibition highlights 80 of them.

Form over function

Many of the earlier watches served more to demonstrate the wearer’s status and wealth than to keep time, says Murray. But while the timepieces might not have operated that efficiently, they made up for it in their decorative appeal. Some of them are form watches, taking the shape of everyday objects; one, for instance, is a bejeweled beetle with diamonds on its back. “It could look like a brooch or could be worn on a chain around the neck as jewelry. For a wealthy clientele, these watches would be considered a luxury item.”

The pieces in the exhibition, Murray points out, were chosen because they tell a particular story about watches of the period. “The oldest ones from the late 15th and early 16th centuries are large gilded [or brass] pieces in a kind of drum format that don’t have especially good timekeeping ability. As the technology improved, the watches got thinner and thinner.”

Period pieces

Mirroring the decorative techniques and themes prevalent in jewelry and art of a particular time period, there are watches that show intricate enamelwork or repoussé work. Some have images.

“A watch from 1805 has a portrait of Napoleon on it. It definitely reflects the period,” says Murray. “And the 18th-century watches have little cupids and other embellishments that echo paintings of that time.”

There are a number of form watches, including a lamb — which might have been given to a child — a musical instrument, and a basket. “There are automatons, which have little moving figures that strike the time, that are really charming. There is even one bracelet watch that dates from approximately 1800 to 1825,” says Murray.

Some of the examples illustrate the Renaissance Revival period, when watches from the late 19th century, adorned with rock crystal and elaborate enamelwork, were designed to look like pieces from the Renaissance era.

Precious materials

“Examples from the Gilded Age are quite splendid, featuring lots of jewels, lots of gold,” says Murray. “Most of the watches in the exhibition are yellow gold, but there is some pink gold, as well as a watch with a rooster on it from about 1825, with gold, platinum and enamel.”

Older examples have unusual materials like bone and shell, she continues. “And there is a silver skull from the early 1700s, where the cranium opens to reveal the watch face.”

The exhibition is a popular one, according to Murray. “The objects are beautifully crafted and tiny, so there is the allure of the craftsmanship and the beautiful jewels and precious materials, which are dazzling and interesting. And the fact that the watches were collected by Utica’s first family and are held by the museum here, that’s part of the story that interests our visitors as well.”

“Jewels of Time: Watches from the Proctor Collection” will run through April 29 at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, 310 Genesee St., Utica, New York. For more information: 315.797.0000; mwpai.org

In high gear

The watches in the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute exhibition beautifully illustrate the combination of watchmaking and decorative skills that elevated timepieces into works of art cherished through the centuries. Here are some examples of the pieces on display:

• A gold triple-case watch, adorned with exquisite enamelwork, features separate decorative outer cases to protect the ornate inner case, according to MWPAI’s Mary Murray. Along with the watch face, the interior boasts a beautiful landscape. Dating from around 1813, the timepiece is the work of Markwick, Markham and Perigal, a London firm that was active from 1725 through 1813. 
  


• Chatelaine watches had upside-down faces so they could be read easily when pinned to a bodice. The exhibition’s Pair-Case Watch and Chatelaine, circa 1725 to 1750, is an ornate example, adorned with gold, old mine diamonds, rubies, agate and enamelwork. It was made by Jacques (or James) DeBaufre in London. 


• A Swiss-made gold form watch in the shape of a beetle, circa 1880 to 1900, has diamonds, emeralds and rubies. “It’s quite special,” says Murray, “because of the way it opens up. Divided down the center of the back, it’s designed so that its wings open up, as if in flight, to reveal the watch face.”

Image: Proctor Collection, Frederick T. Proctor Watch Collection; Proctor Collection, Thomas R. Proctor Watch Collection

Article from the Rapaport Magazine - April 2018. To subscribe click here.