Early 18thc. wandering hour pocket watch

A early 18th century Anglo Dutch verge, with a beautiful ‘wandering hour’, sun & moon dial and calendar, in silver pair cases.

MOVEMENT : Gilt verge movement, with finely pierced and engraved balance cock and plate, with four square baluster pillars. Large silver regulator disk and blued steel screws.

Signed CLARKE & DUNSTER.

In good condition, and running well.

DIAL : A beautiful silver champleve ‘wandering hour’ or retrograde dial, with a central revolving disk, showing a silver moon & stars, and a gold sun, on a blued steel background. This disc rotates every 24 hours, indicating the hour of the day (sun) or night (moon) on the arched Roman V1-V1 hour sector. The single gilt hand shows the minutes.
The date is displayed through the aperture to the dial at 6.

Signed as the movement.

In very good condition throughout. The calendar is functioning correctly.

INNER CASE : Silver, with maker’s mark DR above a fleur de lys, and case number 3970 engraved on the shoulder.

The silver is in good condition except for the left hand hinge sleeve of the bezel which has broken. The bezel still closes and is held firmly by the hinge pin and right hand sleeve when closed. But when open the crystal is loose.

The high dome bull’s eye crystal has a few chips around the edge, the largest at 12.

OUTER CASE : Silver outer, with no discernable maker’s marks.
The hinge, catch and catch button are fine and the bezel closes correctly. The catch spring is fixed to the case by a second, later rivet. The silver is in good condition.

The Anglo-Dutch firm of Clarke and Dunster, a partnership between Christopher Clarke and Roger Dunster, was active in Amsterdam and London from 1722 to about 1725.
The company was a continuation of the firm founded by Asahuerus Fromanteel II and his brother John in 1688. Christopher Clarke (1668-1734), who was married to Anna the daughter of Asahuerus II, joined the firm around 1694 and continued on his own after Asahuerus II died in 1703. In 1722 he started a partnership with Roger Dunster (1695-1747) whereafter the watches were signed Clarke & Dunster.