In the 18th century, a talented watchmaker and creator of mechanical toys, Pierre Jaquet-Droz, lived in Europe. He was born in the canton of Neuchâtel, which was part of the Kingdom of Prussia, worked in London, Paris, Geneva - designed and assembled complex devices that surprised the rulers of Europe and Asia. Among the master's clients was King Ferdinand VI of Spain. In 1758, the watchmaker visited Madrid, leaving there one of his masterpieces, the Shepherd Clock, which is still in the Royal Palace. Some inventions, made several decades before Charles Babbage's instruments, can safely be called the ancestors of computers.
This watch, made around 1750, in addition to showing the time, shows the date, month, zodiac signs, and also strikes the time every hour and a quarter of an hour. Inside there is a small brass carillon, consisting of 18 hammers and 13 bells. Depending on the position of the parts, the carillon plays one of six melodies. On the back of the dial is inscribed "B.C. Lincoln & H. Wainwright/Sept. 1st 1830". It can be assumed that the carillon was replaced that year - thanks to the update, the watch began to play British tunes such as God Save the Queen and Home Sweet Home.
Until 1874, the clock was in Sudbourn Hall, an old mansion in Derbyshire (England), which then belonged to the Marquess of Hertford. The estate was acquired by the collector Sir Richard Wallace, along with the mansion, Pierre Jaquet-Droz's watches were included in his collection. The device is still included in the Wallace collection, formed in 1760-1880. the first four Marquesses of Hertford of the Seymour-Conway family and Richard Wallace.
