Michael Pearson (1936–2017) was an acknowledged expert on Kent clocks and clock-making. He was born in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and educated at

Dartford Grammar School Dartford Grammar School is a secondary foundation school for boys (ages 11–18) in Dartford, Kent, England, which admits girls to its sixth form (ages 16–18). All of the students joining the school are considered to be from the top 25% of t ...

. He served

National Service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

with the Intelligence Corps, following which he returned to the private sector, working in sales, marketing and advertising. During this period he became a keen collector of antiques (an established family business), in particular clocks and early oak furniture. His family had been a notable family antique and antiquarian book dealing business in

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

since 1860, and then in Pall Mall until 1929. Pearson resurrected the old family business, moving it to

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

, where he specialised in antique furniture and clocks. His first horological book, ''

The Beauty of Clocks ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' ...

'', was published in 1979, and he was a respected authority on the history of clocks and clockmaking in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. His book '' Kent Clocks and Clockmakers'' was published in 1997 by Derbyshire-based

Mayfield Books Mayfield may refer to: People * Mayfield (surname) Places Australia * Mayfield, New South Wales, in Newcastle LGA * Mayfield (Queanbeyan–Palerang), New South Wales * Eltham, New South Wales, formerly called Mayfield, in Lismore LGA * Mayfield ...

. He was engaged in collaboration with Bill Bruce (the well-known clock dealer in Lewes), writing a book on Sussex clocks & Clockmakers. He died in March 2017 following a short illness.

References

1936 births 2017 deaths English historians English clockmakers People from Dartford People educated at Dartford Grammar School {{UK-historian-stub