A late 19th century French carriage clock with alarm
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
late 19th century
This late 19th-century French carriage clock features a gilded brass case surmounted by a hinged carrying handle, moulded top, and plinth base with bevelled glass viewing windows, including a top observation pane.
The 2.5-inch white enamel dial displays black Roman hour numerals, red Arabic five-minute outer markers, and blued steel hands, accompanied by a lower subsidiary dial for setting the alarm. Bonhams reports that the clock is powered by a twin-train movement with a Swiss lever platform escapement, striking the hours and half hours on a backplate-mounted blued steel gong shared with the alarm train.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Technical characteristics
- Type
- Carriage clock
- Height
- 17cm (6.5 inches)
- Dial Size
- 2.5 inches
- Escapement
- Swiss lever platform escapement
- Place recorded
- France
- Striking Mechanism
- Hours and half hours on a blued steel gong
Design
- Visible features
- • Glazed brass carriage clock case with rectangular bevelled glass sides and top aperture • Carrying handle with shaped baluster ends and central grip section • Main white enamel dial featuring black Roman numerals and red Arabic five-minute numerals • Subsidiary Arabic alarm dial placed beneath the primary chapter ring • Blued steel Breguet-style hands on the main dial
- Dial Configuration
- The clock displays a 2.5-inch white enamel dial marked with black Roman numerals for the hours and outer red Arabic five-minute numerals. The time is shown with blued steel hands in a Breguet style. Positioned directly below the primary chapter ring is a subsidiary alarm setting dial calibrated with Arabic numerals on white enamel.
- Case Architecture and Glazing
- The carriage clock features a brass case standing 17cm (6.5 inches) high, structured with four plain uprights set between a moulded top and a moulded base. Transparent bevelled glass observation panels enclose the case, including an upper rectangular viewing window in the top. Mounted above the upper observation window is a carrying handle featuring shaped baluster ends and a central grip section.
- Reported Movement and Striking Mechanism
- The cataloguing describes the clock as housing a twin-train movement fitted with a Swiss lever platform escapement. The mechanism strikes the hours and half hours on a blued steel gong mounted to the movement backplate. The auctioneer notes that the alarm train shares this same blued steel gong and is wound from the top left corner of the backplate. The lot was listed as sold with a winding key, though movement plates and internal striking components are not visible in the frontal view.
Identification
- Source note
- Facts transcribed from the linked source listing or collection record. Attribution and specifications are source-reported and have not been independently authenticated.
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: No maker or retailer signature is present on the dial or identified in the cataloguing
- Research required: Internal movement details, backplate, and gong are described by the auction house but concealed in the frontal photograph