2017 June meeting – South London Branch of the BHI

June 1, 2017

THE NEWLY FOUND HISTORY OF DROCOURT AND JACOT CARRIAGE CLOCKS

Leigh Extence

For our June 1st meeting we welcome Leigh Extence from Exeter. Leigh is a third-generation antique dealer whose interest in the high quality workmanship of Drocourt and Jacot drove him to research the hidden depths of these esteemed carriage clockmakers.

In Leigh’s own words:

“In the early 1980s, whilst working with horological dealer and author Derek Roberts in Kent, I took an interest in Jacot carriage clocks, an interest that was to re-emerge some years later having set up on my own account as an antique clock dealer and consultant.
Having bought a rather rare example of a Jacot clock I decided to dig a little deeper and found that by comparison with other major clockmakers, that which had been written about the Jacot family was either rather scant or incorrect. I spent a number of years unearthing as much as I could about both the family and their clocks before holding an exhibition of some thirty examples in 2013. Having realised there was a previously unknown connection between the Jacot and Drocourt families I then undertook the same research for Drocourt and held a further exhibition of Drocourt clocks the following year.
My research has taken in the families, their working practices and their clocks and having undertaken this study I almost feel part of their lives; indeed on finding the death certificate of Pierre Drocourt I felt close to tears!
There have been many exciting surprises over the course of this research; being finally able to identify early pre-1860 ‘unsigned’ Henri Jacot carriage clocks was one, as was being able to verify the relationships with their movement makers; the Baveux and Holingue families of Saint-Nicolas-d’Aliermont, which has now become a further area of research.”

Leigh will be bringing along a number of rare and interesting Carriage Clocks to illustrate his talk.