John Heron

John Heron (1772-1837), originally from Ayr, was a renowned Greenock silversmith and jeweller. The town of Greenock was once a centre of the Scottish silver industry. Many silversmiths lived and worked in Greenock. They created all types of cutlery, spoons, and other household items from silver. Greenock was the home to many of the more famous silversmiths of Scotland. John Heron also made a range of timepieces from clocks to watches, and in 1819, his interest in timekeeping led him to build an observatory to aid in accurately measuring time. It was in place for the discovery on 1st July 1819 of Comet Tralles, known as ‘The Great Comet of 1819’.