Last week, July 16th to 19th 2006, I took a trip to London to see the George Daniels retrospective exhibition. I took the opportunity to visit Roger Smith on the Isle of Man, also home to George Daniels, to tour his workshop. The following posts are some of the photos we took of the trip. It was a wonderful time and I hope you enjoy it.
We stayed at the St. James's Club, which is conveniently located off St. James's St. The St James's Club has based itself at Park Place since 1981. The club was originally founded in 1857 by Earl "Pussy" Granville, foreign secretary, 1870-74, 1880-85 and the Marchese d'Azeglio, Italian premier 1849-1852 following a contretemps at the Travellers Club from which most of the diplomatic corps resigned. The club is close to Sotheby's, New and Old Bond Streets (where all the watches are! ) as well as other great shopping.
We arrived from New York around noon, having gone the whole flight without sleeping (no thanks to the Virgin Atlantic on-demand video system). We only had about an hour or so to rest before packing up again to head to our final destination for today - the Isle of Man.
Waiting for the tube
Thankfully the flight was out of London City airport. It's small enough that checking in is a breeze. Security procedures and waiting at the gate were completely painless.
The airplane that would take us to the Isle of Man. This was the first display of some of the Isle's heritage, the triskelion, painted on the tail of the plane. The triskelion, or three legs, is the symbol of the Isle of Man, Sicily, and Brittany. It appears in many early cultures, including on Mycenaean vessels, on coinage in Lycia, and on staters of Pamphylia (at Aspendos, 370-333 BC) and Pisidia. This was a prelude to some of the ancient history we would see on the Isle of man.*
* Historical tidbits from Wikipedia
We were off!
Soon we left England and headed out to sea
After about an hour we sighted land once again.
The island is very beautiful, with green pastures everywhere
Roger Smith met us at the airport (below) to drive us back to his house near Ramsey.
The drive was very pleasant, and we got to see almost the whole east side of the Isle. The first stop was Douglas, the capital.
The scenery was beautiful the whole way to Roger's workshop
We zipped past the Gaiety Theatre in Douglas. As I was to find out later, it has quite a bit of history to it.
"The Gaiety in its current form was built in 1899 and opened in 1900. However it did have a life before, in the shape of the Pavilion which was opened in 1893 as a large hall with a small stage at one end. This only lasted six short seasons and then closed where-upon the owners of the Pavilion, the Palace and Derby Castle Company, commissioned the renowned Theatre architect Frank Matcham to convert the building into a Opera House and Theatre. The Gaiety opened on July 16th 1900 with a west end production of "The Telephone Girl" starring Miss Ada Blanche. The most successful period of the Gaiety was between 1900 and 1914, also boom years for the Islands tourism industry. The First World War brought an end to the Edwardian era and a change in the whole way of British Life. The future was not to be easy and despite the installation of cinema equipment in the 20's and experiments like the 1938 ice show, the theatre became less and less commercial and the owners less inclined to spend the large sums necessary to maintain the fabric of the building. Time appeared to be running out when in 1971 the Isle Of Man Government acquired the freehold of the Gaiety and by 1976 set about the mammoth task of restoration. The architect in charge of the first phase of the project Victor Glasstone proved a most fortunate choice both for the Gaiety and the Isle Of Man. With very limited resources he recommended that everything possible should be done to put the Gaiety back as near as possible to its original scheme of decoration. A point taken a step further by Mervin Stokes the now General Manager of the Gaiety Theatre who has been employed in the theatre in various capacities for over 30 years. Mervin, along with the Department Of Tourism and the Friends Of the Gaiety, was instrumental in launching the 10 year restoration project. With the generous guidance of theatre consultant Dr. David Wilmore and Charles Sentence (Chairman restoration sub-committee), the result to date is most satisfactory. An important part of the Islands heritage has been preserved for future generations. The theatre is currently a thriving centre for the performing arts on the Isle of Man and hosts all sorts of events both professional and amateur."*
After passing through Douglas, we head out of the hills
And hills...
...and more hills...
...followed by even more hills
Eventually, we saw some sheep, which gave us a bit of a break from the scenery. They must have been extremely hot in their little wool coats!
After that pause, we were back to... you guessed it - hills!
Well, after all that driving, we decided to stop by the local pub for a quick pint. I had Okell's Bitter which is one of the local brews and quite tasty. It has a rich and creamy foam similar to Guinness and Boddingtons.
...the glazed expression waiting for the tube says it all:
All this travelling... all this cost... jet lag... just to go and see a bloke no one has ever heard of who makes watches on some island no one has ever heard of... I must be mental... the girls warned me... my mother warned me... "This obsession with watches isn't normal, my girl, it'll end in tears"... but he seemed so nice, so charming... all those hours spent on ThePurists, I should have known it wasn't normal...
I apologize for that horrible photo as I didn't know Felipe was snapping away. But, alas, I should have known better! Anyway, that look was because we had not slept in 36 hours at that point; true exhaustion in all it's glory.
But the trip to the Isle of Man was well worth it! And my friends do think i'm crazy - because i actually enjoy all this watch stuff!
Roger, thank you again for your generous hospitality. It was truly a treat! All the best to you and your talented team!
It's a look I see on my wife's as I drag her around pointing out stuff that only a watch nerd could possibly be interested in. Felipe's lucky in lots of ways.
That's a great intro. I can understand why a watchmaker would want to live on the Isle of Man. There appear to be absolutely no distractions. At all. Of any kind. Other than hills. A lot of hills. .
Before getting to Roger's house, we went past this ancient church, Kirk Ballaugh. It is an early church in the north of the Island which was extended and improved in the early and late 1700's and refurbished in the mid to late 1800's. The church still holds services to this day.
The church has crooked gates, and legend goes that when a virgin bride crosses them they will straighten up. Needless to say they still look pretty crooked to me
We finally get to Roger's house and workshop, which was converted from the garage (more on that later). It is a very quaint and calm location, giving Roger and his team peace and quiet to work on watches. Below is Roger's "back yard"
Roger's house has a cozy living room complete with fireplace. The house was spotted with little curiosities
Naturally Roger has nothing but the best, with a 100% "in-house" clock
Upstairs Roger has his office, where he handles telephone calls, emails, and general administration of the business.
There were several paintings and drawings throughout the house and the workshop. Some were made by David Penney, who illustrated George Daniels' "Watchmaking" book. When I saw this one I had to take a photo for Paul.
An advertisement for Roger's services from the Financial Times
Like every watch aficionado, Roger's house is also chockfull of watch magazines.
This message has been edited by pc01 on Jul 23, 2006 1:14 PM
It was now time for dinner, and Roger showed us what a great cook he is. He prepared everything himself while we sat and had aperitifs.
A meal to make any WFED reader's mouth water - pasta with chicken and asparagus in a cream sauce, topped by delicious crispy bacon.
Because of the heat, it went very well with this chilled Chilean white. Dessert was a simple fresh grapefruit salad.
The happy diners, particularly happy after having finished the second bottle of wine!
After dinner, Roger took us for a stroll. Roger pointed out in the distance and said we could go to the beach "over there" and then turned around a proceeded to walk in the opposite direction! We were taking the long road and I had absolutely no complaints - more time to talk watches with the master.
We walked past some cows, who were just finishing their dinner.
When we came across this field with bails of hay, Roger introduced us to the Isle of Man pastime: "hay tipping" (similar to cow tipping in the US)
I was still digesting so did not partake in the activities.
We finally arrived at the beach, and I could smell the briny air. We went down via a "public pathway" that was conveniently located inside someone's property!!
The beach was beautiful and almost totally deserted. We could only make out a couple of people in the distance.
We walked along the beach back to Roger's house as the sun slowly set on the horizon
A very relaxing end to a very long day, having been in New York the night before, and London earlier in the day.
I woke bright and early, feeling refreshed from the good night's sleep. I was ready to visit Roger's workshop, meet the team, and see how things were coming along with the Series 2. But first, we had breakfast.
It was another beautiful hot day, so we had breakfast outside
It is a very peaceful setting and all we could hear were the birds. The complete opposite of grabbing a rushed Starbucks back in New York.
After breakfast, we met the team behind Roger W. Smith Ltd. Roger needs no introduction, but if you are not familiar with him you can take a look at these articles by Curtis Thomson and Bill Taylor:
The second watchmaker on the team is Andrew Jones. He is an old friend of Roger's from watchmaking school, and used to work for Asprey doing restoration work and servicing.
The third watchmaker is Francis Rossignol. Francis is a young watchmaker from Neuchatel who went to work with Vianney Halter after school, for about 4 years. He decided to leave Switzerland completely and come and live on the Isle of Man to work with Roger. He was very interested in the small artisanal way of making watches that Roger was working on.
Last but not least, the engineer! Mr. Andrew Dallison, who was working as an engineer making parts for Rolls Royce aircraft engines. Initially it was quite a challenge to get used to the scale of watch parts, but Andrew has gotten the hang of it.
The operation may be small, but it is highly professional. Every member of the team wears a white coat (watch makers) or blue coat (engineer) embroidered with Roger W. Smith Ltd. No different than visiting the workshops at Patek, Vacheron, or other big brands.
After the introductions the lads went back to work, solving the mysteries of the watch world.
===== edited to correct typo
(edited to correct formatting after the typo edit MTF )
(edited to restore working format, PeterCDE )
This message has been edited by pc01 on Jul 23, 2006 1:16 PM This message has been edited by MelvynTeillolFoo on Jul 23, 2006 9:14 AM This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on Jul 22, 2006 8:24 PM
At this point we toured the workshop, which is extremely high tech considering its size. Roger expects to continue here for about a year before having to move to larger quarters.
The CNC machine, which is operated by Mr. Dallison
A watchmaker's lathe. Prior to having the CNC most of the work was done here.
The R&D department
Some more machines
The optical comparator
The benches are set up in two levels because the watchmakers are not assembling 100% of the time. This allows the watchmakers to work with design documents, parts, etc. on the low table, and move to the higher table for assembling and fine tuning.
Some design documents for the Series 2
Reference material - "The Practical Watch Escapement" by George Daniels
While the CNC is used for (relatively) quick development of parts, the workshop still has all the accoutrements of a pre-computer atelier.
Roger found this machine on eBay, unused and still in the original packing oil. It is a pinion maker that was at one point used by the USA to make timing devices for bombs. Roger has rightfully brought it back to its original peaceful use. Andrew is cleaning and restoring it, and when ready it will be used for making pinions.
After the tour, we were given a demonstration of the CNC machine
It is amazing what can be done with it. This cutter (below) is so tiny that it takes away only a few microns of material at a time.
The workshop also had several drawings and clippings on the walls.
An older version of the Series 2 movement.
Omega's introduction of the Daniels co-axial escapement.
Some vintage carriage clocks. We can see where Roger got his inspiration for the carriage clock show before.
The firm of Roger W. Smith Ltd is not limited to making watches, they also make clocks. This is a clock currently in progress, with grasshopper escapement.
This is the prototype escapement being tested.
The dial, entirely hand engraved, by Charles Scarr.
The craftsmanship was truly breathtaking.
I wondered around to see what else I could find. This is a piece I was lucky to have seen at the early stages a few years ago, and it was finally finished in all its glory. The only thing it needs now is a new owner. Unfortunately, as I have recently made a down payment on an apartment I was out of funds to make a down payment on this watch. Mycroft's axiom of "buy now, declare bankruptcy later, but never regret" immediately came to mind.
As I continued to browse the workshop I saw some bits and parts for a watch that I was more familiar with
The rose gold chatons
But enough parts! I wanted to see the watch! There it was on Roger's wrist
The movement has incredible depth and character, with no shortcuts.
The buckle is equally substantial, and its heft reminds me of Lange buckles.
Roger is still adjusting the design and may make it a little more curved so that it better follows the lines of the wrist.
After all that excitement it was time for a cuppa before we headed home.
Roger was coming back to London with us to attend the George Daniels exhibition hosted by Sotheby's (more on that later) and to meet with clients throughout the week. We had about two hours of free time before having to be at the airport, so Roger took this opportunity to drive us around the Island. One of the stops was St. Patrick's Isle, where we saw Peel Castle.
"Peel Castle, one of the Isle of Man's principal historic monuments occupies the important site of St Patrick's Isle at Peel. The Castle's Curtain Wall encircles the ruins of many buildings which are a testimony to the site's religious and secular importance in Manx history. These include St. Patrick's Church and the Round Tower from the 11th century, the 13th century Cathedral of St. German, and the later apartments of the Lords of Mann. The importance of the Isle as a centre of Manx Christianity was established in the 6th century and this role was to survive the arrival of the 'pagan' Norse Vikings at the end of the 8th century. In the 11th century it became the ruling seat of the Norse Kingdom of Man and the Isles, first united by Godred Crovan.
A major six year programme of archaeological excavation commencing in 1982 emphasised the prime importance of the site. The most dramatic find was the Norse-period grave of a lady of high social status; the jewellery and effects buried with her can be seen on display with other excavation finds in the Manx Museum.
After 1333, the construction of the best preserved building, the Gatehouse, was followed by the completion of the Curtain Wall and later by the emplacement of artillery. St German's Cathedral was remodelled and the adjoining residential block of the Vicars Chorale became the 'Lords House', the apartments of a succession of Lords of Mann installed at this time.
The Revestment of the Sovereignty of the English Crown in 1765 found the importance of Peel Castle in decline and its buildings were allowed to decay through a period of limited military use which ended in the latter half of the 19th century."*
The low tide gave us a glimpse of the greenery below the crystal clear water
The entrance to the castle. We did not go in, but decided to take the stroll around it. Incidentally, we can see here some of the Isle of Man's horological roots.
"Castle Sun Dial - Used long ago to show true noon. The guard was changed as the corner cast shadow fell on this mark."
Several hundred years ago people were much shorter. We ducked on the way through to the footpath around the castle
The view on the other side was equally beautiful
The water was so clear that you could see the fish...
... and so could the seagulls
By now we were out of time, so we got back in the car and headed to the airport
After a brief lunch at the airport, where it took about five tries to validate my credit card (the card machine was linked to the same line that the people in the store office checked the Internet!) we got back on the plane to head to London. It was a very memorable visit, but it was not over yet!
The following day we headed to Sotheby's to see the George Daniels retrospective exhibition. This was a once in a lifetime event that will likely never be seen again - all (but one) of George Daniels' watches in one room, together with their maker! We met several old friends there who had also made the trip to see the exhibition.
Unfortunately I was not allowed to take photos of the watches, so I had to make do with a low-key point & shoot camera, but you can buy a catalogue from Sotheby's with historical information on each piece as well as detailed photographs.
Roger Smith talking to Jonathan Darracott, the head of Sotheby's Watch Department in London. On the left you can see the People's Archive video of George Daniels' life. You can see the video here (http://www.peoplesarchive.com) or you can also order a DVD.
The guards beginning to wonder what I'm doing.
A clock retrofitted with a grasshopper escapement by George Daniels. There is a wonderful anecdote about these clocks, among many others, in the Sotheby's catalogue:
"In Peter Shaffer's 1979 play Amadeus there is an amusing scene in which the young Mozart is introduced to the Court of the Austrian Emperor, Joseph II and to the Court Composer, Antonio Salieri. In honour of Mozart's arrival Salieri has composed a short piano piece which he proceeds to play and then offers the score as a gift to the young genius. The precocious Mozart declines it, implying that he has no difficulty remembering a score even after hearing it only once. He then plays the piece from memory and even improvises several variations. A very similar circumstance neatly illustrates the quiddity of George Daniels' mechanical genius. Cecil Clutton [a founder member of the Antiquarian Horological Society and good friends with George Daniels] had for many years admired the stately regulator by Benjamin Gray & Justin Vulliamy belonging to the society of Antiquaries in London. A feature of this clock is its fascinatingly complex 'grasshopper' escapement. It was Cecil Clutton's idea that George Daniels should make him a copy of this escapement and fit it to an otherwise undistinguished nineteenth century domestic regulator. To this end, an appointment was made and the necessary permission obtained to examine in detail the Society of Antiquaries' clock. Cecil Clutton arrived armed with step ladder, camera, drawing equipment and measuring devices, all of which he imagined would be required if the action of the escapement was to be properly understood. Not so, George Daniels simply climbed the ladder, observed the escapement in action for a few moments and pronounced himself satisfied that he could not only make the escapement but could probably improve on it."
A display of books by George Daniels and co-authors. The book on the top is a limited edition autobiography bound in the finest English leather with a watch part made by the man himself. This book is available at the amiable price of GBP 3,000 (no, that's not a typo).
Unfortunately, I did not take a photo with George Daniels, but talking to him and being part of this was an unforgettable experience in itself.
The following day was our last in London before heading back to New York. Our flight left in the evening, so we spent the day walking around the area doing some shopping and admiring London's history
The famous Palace Theatre
Fortnum & Mason, where the Queen goes grocery shopping
And to end our trip, a special photo just for Alex.
~ FIN ~
NB: A special Thanks to Roger Smith and his team for their time and hospitality, without which none of this would have been possible.
In a way, I feel very UN-fortunate to have seen Roger's work. . .
July 23 2006, 7:46 PM
. . .it makes other watches, no matter how expensive, seem cheap; one almost wants to chuck it all in and just wear G-Shocks if one can't have an R. W. Smith wristwatch or pocket watch.
Almost . Still, just magnificent. Thanks to Roger Smith & Co. and also Felipe and Lorena for bringing us this great vicarious experience!
Amazing Job Felipe. Your pictures made everything look even nicer then in real life.
July 24 2006, 3:52 AM
Except for the actual watches. Putting down that #3 Tourbillon was difficult. I have to admit I did question the need for housing as I held it trying to be rational.
for a wonderful tour.
It was great to see the two of you again even if it was only in pictures.
And thank you so much for sharing this once in a lifetime experience with us. I just have to put my tongue back in my mouth and wipe the drool off my keyboard
What a fantastic experience!
This must be one of the most elegant and living reports,
ever at ThePuristS!
Felipe, you really have material for the photo forum for a month!
Starting with the pics from the plane of the Green Island,
is such an aristic introduction!
And every pic of the nature, the hills, sheeps and seagulls,
are just amazing.
The visit at the Master himself, is an "ever return to object".
This shold of course, if anything, be filed at Best of PuristS.
It's an encyclopedia!
Thanks, it's like beeing part of the trip
Doc
I can only agree that this is one of the best articles I've ever seen on The Purists. Having visited with Roger Smith on the Island, I can only envy how well Felipe has captured the flavor of the place and the sprit of Roger's shop in both his terrific photos and text.
And the shots of the Daniels exhibit are a real plus.
for sharing these wonderful photos from your trip. I was also fortunate enough to spend some time with Roger Smith while he was in London last week, he is a charming man and his work is just sublime.
From the pictures I see you had an incredible time! Thanks very much for posting the report.
That rectangular watch, is that the no 3 Tourbillon? It looks great. The Series II looks awesome too, perhaps even better then the Tourbillon; Did Mr. Smith give more information about the future Perpetual Calendar Series II?
Again, thank you Felipe for posting this great article!
Best regards
Edwin
btw, the series II looks quite large; do you know the dimensions of the watch?
It's like "watching" the travel channel - pun intended (I hope). I met Roger at IGOTT in Singapore, and wish I had known more about him. His Series II really looks nice. Thank you so much for taking the time to record your trip and share it with us.
Great account of the trip - thanks Felipe and Lorena (who must have
July 23 2006, 1:53 PM
been responsible for some of the camera work). Love that RW Smith No 3. Are you sure you want to own the park bench where you sleep??
You lucky dawg - you managed to get a res at Burger King. Was lucky to get in once and the Whopper with cheese was a joy to behold. The 8 pints of lager before hand might have had something to do with the illness later....
Any pictures of the watch box from Linley yet?
Thanks - really enjoyed the detailed account. Good to see England and London in the sunshine - which was probably a surprise!
) as well as other great shopping.
.
