Salomons, Sir David Lionel (1851-1925)
Salomons, Sir David Lionel (1851-1925)
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Englischer Uhrensammler
Sir David Lionel Salomons ist der Sohn von Philip Salomons und Emma Montefiore. Sein Onkel ist Sir David Salomons, von dem er später den Titel und die Immobilien in erbte. 1882 heiratet er Laura de Stern. Aus dieser Ehe gehen fünf Kinder hervor: Maud, Sybil, David Reginald, Vera und Ethel.
Salomons stellte eine berühmte Sammlung von Breguet-Taschenuhren zusammen, mit Breguet’s berühmte Uhr Nr. 160, die "Marie Antoinette" welche er von Louis Desoutter kaufte. Er schrieb mehrere Bücher über Uhren von Breguet und veröffentlichte einen Katalog seiner Sammlung. In seinem Buch über Breguet von 1921 schrieb er über den Kauf der Marie-Antoinette Uhr:
"I now come to the year 1917, on May 3rd, a pouring wet day, when I passed a shop set back from the pavement near Regent Street, into the window of which I had never looked, as only modern jewellery was displayed. My attention was attracted by a curious-looking watch differing from the usual display, and I saw a notice by its side, bearing the name "Marie Antoinette." I then went up to the window to have a better look at the watch, and I saw that it had been made for that ill-fated Queen by Breguet, and was his masterpiece. A high price was put on it, and I went on to my house in Grosvenor Street, calculating all the way : "Could I afford this?" I then sat down to answer some letters, but all the time the reflection passed through my mind that such a watch could not stop long in that window if the rain ceased. Having come to the conclusion that I could offer a certain figure, I put on a waterproof and started back to the shop. The owner (Louis Desoutter), I found, had made a special study of Breguet's work throughout his life. It is against my principles to make "offers," but when he told me the watch was being sold on commission, I was free to offer the price I proposed to give. I examined the timepiece, which is perfect, and said if he could let me have the reply to my offer by 10 a.m. the next morning, I should still be at home. At 9.30 the next morning, the vendor arrived with the watch, and said my price if advanced £50 would be accepted. I could not quarrel over the extra £50, so I gave a cheque and kept the watch. It turned out to be a good purchase, judging from seducing offers made to me later on to part with it. Evening after evening, I studied this watch, which is most complex and interesting, with the result that I formed the opinion that no other maker of watches could approach such work, and I have had considerable experience of the productions of other makers."
Damit war der Kontakt mit Louis Desoutter noch nicht beendet, Desoutters Wissen über Breguet war eine willkommene Ergänzung und Desoutter half ihm bei dem Buch und dem Katalog und machte auch die Fotos der Marie-Antoinette Uhr.
Bei seinem Tod im Jahr 1925 überließ Salomons seiner Tochter Vera Bryce (1888–1969) 57 seiner besten Breguet-Stücke, darunter die Nr. 160 "Marie-Antoinette". Den anderen Teil der Sammlung erbte seine Witwe. Sie ließ die Uhren dann 1964/1965 bei Christie’s in London versteigern. Nach dem Ersten Weltkrieg war Vera nach Jerusalem gezogen und wurde aktive Philanthropin. Nach dem Tod ihres Professors Leo Aryeh Mayer, Rektor der Hebräischen Universität von Jerusalem, gründete sie das LA Mayer Institut für Islamische Kunst und schenkte dem Museum ihre wertvollen Uhren, um sie in einer eigenen Galerie auszustellen. Das LA Mayer Institut für Islamische Kunst wurde 1974 der Öffentlichkeit zugänglich gemacht, als Vera bereits gestorben war.