Antiquarian Horological Society

The clock retains its original verge escapement and pull repeating on two bells with alarm. The provision of repeating work for the quarters and hours and alarm work (but no hour-striking work) indicates that this is a clock intended for use in a bedroom.

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From Antiquarian Horology, December 1999.

This beautiful dial is a good example of a third period London lantern clock, made just after the restoration of King Charles II. The maker, Benjamin Hill, joined the Clockmakers Company from the Blacksmiths in 1640. He became Master in 1657 and served for two years.

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From Antiquarian Horology, September 1999.

The clock is signed on a plaque on the dial and on the back plate. In the arch are subsidiary dials for strike/silent and rise and fall regulation.

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From Antiquarian Horology, Spring 1999.

The outer case is pierced shagreen covered, and the gilt metal inner case is intricately pierced and engraved. The dial is silver gilt.

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From Antiquarian Horology, Spring 1999.

A fine astronomical calendarial table clock by Thomas Barry of Ormskirk.

On the back of the rotating map of the heavens in the arch of the left hand dial the clock is signed and dated "T.Barry, Ormskirk. Fecit 1787".

The clock was originally to be offered in a raffle by Thomas Barry at Forshaws Hotel in Liverpool. There were to be 150 subscribers at one guinea each (£157.50) but no record of success or otherwise of the raffle has yet been discovered.

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From Antiquarian Horology, March 2003.

This clock by Drury, made c.1745, with pull-quarter repeating, has a 5 inch dial with date aperture and rise and fall regulation in the arch. The backplate is well engraved with an asymmetric design.

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From Antiquarian Horology, March 2002.

It was made c.1916 by Nicole Nielsen, Soho Square London and signed 'Chas. Frodsham 27 South Molton Street No.09571 London' on a silvered dial. There is a start/stop push button in the pendant. The outer dial is for 0-60s marked every 5, and the inset dial is marked 0-100 in 1/100th second intervals. There is a flush winding button recessed into the back cover.

The movement, with six jewels and a cylinder escapement, has a very small balance wheel beating 72,000 per hour. The watch, which is stopped by a small 'finger' contacting the balance wheel rim, was use for accurate duration timing (up to 60 seconds) such as the timing of projectile flights.

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From Antiquarian Horology, December 2002.

An example of a rare electric clock using a coil oscillating between two poles of a magnet and acting as a balance under the control of a large helical spring. The clock, with centre-seconds sweep hand is contained in a four-glass case with door at the front on a marble base containing the battery compartment. The oscillations of the long vertical balance staff are converted to a rotary motion by a ratchet mechanism contained within the movement.

This type of clock is the subject of British patent No. 156408 of 1919, awarded to Frank Holden.

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From Antiquarian Horology, December 2002.

In 1998, the National Museum Speelklok, Utrecht acquired its oldest musical clock: a late-Gothic chamber clock from the Southern Netherlands.

The clock dates from around 1500 or, according to some experts, from the late-fifteenth century. Because of its two prominent bell-striking figures the clock, on joining the museum collection, was baptized "the Jacquemarts clock". The iron frame with its Gothic buttress-shaped corner posts contains five separate trains of wheels: the going, hour-striking, quarter-hour-striking, musical and alarm trains. The trains will run for some 15 hours on one winding. On the dial, the longer hand indicates the hours and the shorter hand indicates the quarters. Above the chapter ring the phases of the moon are shown.

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From Antiquarian Horology, June 2003.

A Swiss domestic iron clock, made by Ehrhard Liechti, Winterhur, 1572, signed and dated by the maker. This is a fine example of the costliest type of Gothic iron clock with three trains for going, quarters and hour striking. The two bells are mounted in a richly decorated bell carriage set above the crenellated balance wheel. Mon age and phase indication, originally with alarm, is now missing.

The clock is from the Kellenburg Collection, Trade and Industry Museum, Winterthur, Switzerland

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From Antiquarian Horology, December 2001.

A gold open face chronograph with regulator dial signed John Poole 57 Fenchurch Street London, No. 4768, and hallmarked London 1874. The three-quarter plate movement has a compensated balance and English single roller lever escapement. There is start, stop, back-to-zero chronograph operation via the crown. A watch where the signatory, a chronometer maker of the first class, is in this instance only the retailer.

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From Antiquarian Horology, March 2002.

A silver cased pocket chronometer by Daniel Ross of Exeter, No.499. The double-bottomed open faced silver case is hallmarked for London 1837.

The watch has a two arm bi-metallic balance with two wedge-shaped weights and a blue steel free-sprung helical balance spring. The escapement is a spring detent of the Earnshaw type.

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From Antiquarian Horology, June 2001.

A longcase clock dial by the well-known Amsterdam maker Jan Breukelaar (1738 - post 1790). The dial probably dates from around 1775 and is of a type found on the more expensive Amsterdam clocks.

The elements in the dial centre consist of the date within the seconds ring (top centre), either side of which are triangular apertures showing the month and day of the week. Above the moon disc is a small aperture showing the hour of high tide at Amsterdam.

The painting depicts the Greek mythological figure of Urania, one of the nine Muses and patron of astronomy.

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From Antiquarian Horology, March 2006.