We are familiar with various versions of place names and surnames in clock and watch signatures from the 18th century and earlier but I was wondering are they really alternatives or is it that brass was so expensive you had to put up with engraving errors?
I have some here from my own collection, but I've seen many more.
I have one that appears to have been corrected to make an i into an e. I have seen them with letters in superscript above the middle of a name to try and add them back, and in one book saw one once that had a bit crossed out.
I'm sure others here have examples. These are from my clocks but I have a pocket watch spelling signed for John Spurrier from wimborne as winborne. A longcase of his recently sold had Wimborn.
This is Thomas Barrett, you can see somebody tried to make the i into an e.
This is Richard Fennel spelt with an i instead
Nowhere is Mr Monkland's name spelled like this
This one is correct, but I know another clock with an almost identical dial but the spelling is Blanford
I have some here from my own collection, but I've seen many more.
I have one that appears to have been corrected to make an i into an e. I have seen them with letters in superscript above the middle of a name to try and add them back, and in one book saw one once that had a bit crossed out.
I'm sure others here have examples. These are from my clocks but I have a pocket watch spelling signed for John Spurrier from wimborne as winborne. A longcase of his recently sold had Wimborn.
This is Thomas Barrett, you can see somebody tried to make the i into an e.

This is Richard Fennel spelt with an i instead

Nowhere is Mr Monkland's name spelled like this

This one is correct, but I know another clock with an almost identical dial but the spelling is Blanford

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