A highly unusual centre-seconds regulator movement with five-legged gravity escapement, J. Watson, Luton, circa 1900 The small but substantial three pillar weight-driven movement with horizontally laid out train with Harrison’s maintaining power, high pinion count and centre arbor passing through the enlarged backplate to engage via 72 tooth minute wheel and 12 leaf pinion with the five-legged escape wheel pivoted within a strip subframe applied to rear of the backplate, the frontplate with motionwork for minute hand and concentric twelve and twenty-four hour hands, the thick 10.5 inch circular silvered brass dial with single winding hole and signed J. Watson, Luton, No. 103 within Arabic numeral twelve-hour chapter ring with vertically aligned numerals, combined minute and second ring and conforming Arabic twenty-four hour numeral band within the outer track, the centre issuing two blued steel hour hands, counterweighted minute and lightweight seconds hands, the whole mounted via four substantial tubular iron pillars screwed to the movement backplate onto a shaped cast iron bracket drilled for wall/case mounting and incorporating pendulum suspension cheeks (no pendulum or weight). J. Watson of Luton appears not to be recorded as a clockmaker in the usual sources which is perhaps somewhat surprising considering the highly accomplished design of the current lot as well as the fact that it is numbered 103 suggesting that Watson had a reasonable output. The Gravity escapement in the current lot has its roots in the exploratory designs of some of the leading late 18th and early 19th century makers such as Berthoud, Mudge, Cumming and Hardy. Bloxam had come close to perfecting the design in 1853 however was still plagued by the fault encountered by earlier attempts in that the pallets tended to bounce off the escapement locking surface; known as 'tripping'. Edward Denison (later Lord Grimthorp) perfected the gravity escapement in 1860 by eliminating the tripping problem. He did this through the connection of a fly (air brake), directly to the escape arbor via a friction clutch. It allows the fan to advance slightly after the escapement engages the pallet. The inertia provided by the weight of the fly keeps the escapement seated against the pallet during locking; in essence acting as an 'energy sink'. This escapement provides a nearly detached pendulum from the rest of the clockwork and, as there is no sliding friction, there is no need to oil the escapement. These features made the escapement perfect for use in turret clocks where a high degree of accuracy can be maintained with minimal maintenance.There are two principal designs of gravity escapement the first is the double three-legged type the second in the four legged design. The former uses two pairs of three legs for the pallets and three impulse pins at the centre whilst the second has four legs and four pins. The disadvantage of the both of these designs is that the escape arbor revolves either 1/6 (double three legged) or ¼ (four legged) for each beat of the pendulum hence the train of the timepiece needs suitable long gearing to maintain a reasonably long duration.The current movement is highly unusual in that it utilizes a five legged arrangement which, to the cataloguer’s best knowledge may well be unique. The most likely reason why this variation has been employed is to assist in the rationalizing of the train to facilitate centre-seconds with a seconds pendulum. The general inventiveness and need accuracy coupled with twenty-four and twelve hour notations suggests that the current lot was perhaps made for an office within a commercial/industrial context such as railway, factory or communications.