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Carriage clock by Drocourt à Paris, Paris, c. 1880 — view 1 of 6
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Clocks · Carriage clock

Carriage clock by Drocourt à Paris, Paris, c. 1880

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Drocourt à Paris (maker)
Date
c. 1880
Historical period
Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)
Country of origin
France
Place
Paris
Object type
Carriage clock
Dimensions
Height 21 cm
Dealer
Howard Walwyn Fine Antique Clocks (dealer), London
Stock no.
SKU 341
Credit line
Dealer listing, Howard Walwyn (SKU 341)
Catalogue title (original)
DROCOURT À PARIS, N° 17001. A rare giant gorge cased carriage clock (English)

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Record summary

Catalogued by Howard Walwyn Fine Antique Clocks (dealer), London (stock number SKU 341), this is a carriage clock by Drocourt à Paris, made in Paris, France, dated c. 1880. The Atlas places it in the Industrial Revolution period (1850 – 1900) of its Clocks collection. Recorded dimensions: Height 21 cm. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.

Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.

Catalogue description

Dealer description — Howard Walwyn

A rare giant gorge cased carriage clock of exceptional quality, the 8-day movement with hour strike on the hours and passing strike at half past the hour. It also has an alarm feature whose subsidiary dial is set below VI on the dial. The stunning engraved case has porcelain side panels depict angels, cherubs and angelic maidens within a celestial blue and gold border. The 4 inch main porcelain dial has a similar blue and gilt border and there are cherubs holding up a circular wreath of roses. The clock retains its three original tapering blued steel hands. Such giant carriage clocks were made in very small numbers and even fewer have survived. This clock was made for the English market and retailed in Switzerland. Height : 8 ¼ in (21 cm) Width : 5 ¾ in (14.5 cm) Depth : 4 ¼ in (11 cm) HW6167

Historical context

Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)

American interchangeable-parts manufacture; railroad time standards; Swiss and German factory systems.

Factory production transformed the clock into an everyday object. American makers (Seth Thomas, Ansonia, Waterbury) and German factories (Junghans, Gustav Becker, Lenzkirch) sold millions of shelf, wall and alarm clocks worldwide; France produced standardised Paris movements and carriage clocks; electric time distribution began.

Read the period in the timelineMore clocks from this periodEarlier: Precision & Scientific Horology

Atlas type guide

Carriage and travel clocks

The carriage clock is a portable spring clock with a balance-wheel escapement and a brass case with glass panels and a carrying handle. Abraham-Louis Breguet made early examples around 1800, and from the 1830s Paul Garnier and other French makers industrialised production, with the small towns of Saint-Nicolas-d'Aliermont and the Franche-Comté supplying movements for retailers worldwide.

Typical features include a platform escapement mounted horizontally on top of the movement (usually a lever, sometimes cylinder or Garnier's chaff-cutter), striking or repeating work, and alarms. English carriage clocks, generally larger and with fusees, were made by firms such as Frodsham and Dent. Travel clocks in folding leather cases became popular in the twentieth century.

What to look for

  • A platform escapement visible through the top glass.
  • Case styles: corniche, gorge, anglaise, obis or engraved cases.
  • Repeat buttons on top and strike/silent levers.
  • Stamps of movement makers (e.g. Drocourt, Jacot, Margaine, Richard & Co.) on the backplate.

Dating clues

  • Early carriage clocks with Breguet or Garnier features: c. 1800–1850.
  • Mass-produced French carriage clocks: c. 1850–1914.
  • Folding travel clocks and alarm travel clocks: mostly 1920–1970.

General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.

Read next:Detached lever escapement

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