Skinner Auction of Science, Technology & Clocks May 1st in Marlborough, MA

Skinner, Inc. today announced that more than 500 objects from the Ted Crom Horological Tool Collection and Library will be offered at auction in Skinner’s Science, Technology & Clocks auction, May 1, 2010 at 10 a.m. in its Marlborough, Massachusetts gallery. Ted Crom was a world-renowned collector of and international authority on horological tools. Thought to be the most comprehensive private collection of its type, The Crom collection was built over a fifty year time span and features wheel-cutting engines, ornamental turning lathes, mandrels, turns, and watch and clock making tools.

Educated in engineering at the University of Maryland, Columbia University and the University of Florida, Dr. Crom received an honorary Doctorate in Engineering from the University of Maryland for his contributions to the field. He was a member of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, the British Horological Institute, the Antiquarian Horological Society, the American Watchmaker’s Institute, the Society of Ornamental Turners and Ornamental Turners International, to name a few. His membership in the NAWCC included lecturer and leadership status. Crom’s passion for such objects led him on an academic pursuit, which culminated in his authoring six books on the subject.

From Crom’s collection comes two Rose engines including an important example from the shop of A. L. Breguet, Paris and an 18th century brass and iron wheel cutting engine by Thomas Green, Prescott (United Kingdom). Wheel cutting engines, lathes, depthing tools, watch and clock maker’s hand tools and the extensive Crom library with horological titles from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries will also be up for bid. The library includes a copy of Instititutio Astronomica by Pierre Gassendi 1653; Edward Parry’s Journal of a Voyage for the Discovery of a Northwest Passage, 1821; William Derham’s The Artificial Clockmaker, 1714. In addition, this sale will feature the David Evans collection of Liverpool watches, 1785-1850, including a pair of gilt metal pair-cased rack lever watches with complementary dials estimated at $2,500-$3,500 and an extensive collection of American and European clocks and scientific instruments.