Curator's Chronicles The Curator of Clocktime, Dr Kristin Leith, invites you to discover more about her world of horology. Hello Clocktimers! It’s been a busy autumn so far. Much of my time has been devoted to readying Clocktime’s new exhibits. There is a lot of research and development that goes into the preparation of each exhibit. I oversee the development of an animated version of each timekeeper that goes 24/7 as well as the videos and image gallery featured as part of each exhibit. To curate these elements, I work closely with our design team, adjusting and testing animations of each complication, reviewing edits and sourcing and finessing images. I also write the story of the timekeeper. This involves reviewing the John C Taylor archives, researching literature and scouring catalogues. I also chase up sources, talk to experts and get to grips with complicated mechanisms. It’s an unpredictable but extremely rewarding journey, as I never know exactly where the research will take me. My aim for each story is to bring to life the smaller, human stories of each maker and timekeeper, while also illuminating the larger, often historical, forces that affected their lives and careers. Email me here to tell me about your experience of the new exhibits. After attending a friend’s fabulous wedding in London with my history-loving family, I spent a couple days at the Guildhall Library researching horological apprentices in 19th century London for a project I’m working on with Andrew Canter of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers. During the 1800s, the clockmaking apprenticeship system underwent seismic changes, as it was greatly bound up in the gradual but dramatic demise of the British watchmaking industry. As luck would have it, this theme tied into the topic of this year’s Dingwall-Beloe Lecture on 28 October at the British Museum. This year’s talk, American Superiority at the 1851 Great Exhibition, was given by the eminent horologist Bob Frishman. Congratulations to Bob on delivering an outstanding lecture. It was, quite simply, a master class. In addition to all his horological experience and accolades, Bob worked as a speech writer for Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, the first African American to run for a major party’s nomination for President of the United States. I also gave a talk at the British Horological Institute’s (BHI) Autumn Festival of Horology at the Museum of Timekeeping in Newark. The subject was ‘Celebrating British Clockmaking’, which was enjoyed by an attentive audience, many of whom were new to horological history. There’s more information in the article below. As we hunker down towards winter and settle into colder, darker days, I wish you all excellent timing. Until next time Kristin Leith
