Courtenay Adrian Ilbert dating history

Details

Courtenay Adrian Ilbert (1888–1956), a professional civil engineer interested in horology, was a notable private collector of watches. He brought together the most important collection of watches ever achieved by a private collector. In 1958, after his death, his collection was acquired by the British Museum. Initially, the collection had been put up for auction, but was saved for the public by a private donation to the British Museum for this purpose and the auction was subsequently cancelled. The collection, now known as the Ilbert collection, includes the Earnshaw 509 chronometer one of only two surviving out of a complement of 22 from the voyage of the Beagle.