Clocks · Carriage clock
Carriage clock by J.W. Benson, Ludgate Hill, London, c. 1860
- Maker / attribution
- J.W. Benson (maker)
- Date
- c. 1860
- Historical period
- Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)
- Country of origin
- England
- Place
- Ludgate Hill, London
- Object type
- Carriage clock
- Dimensions
- Height 25.5 cm
- Stock no.
- SKU 534
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Howard Walwyn (SKU 534)
- Catalogue title (original)
- J.W. BENSON. A Victorian period Giant English carriage clock (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Howard Walwyn Fine Antique Clocks (dealer), London (stock number SKU 534), this is a carriage clock by J.W. Benson, made in Ludgate Hill, London, England, dated c. 1860. The Atlas places it in the Industrial Revolution period (1850 – 1900) of its Clocks collection. Recorded dimensions: Height 25.5 cm. The record is illustrated with 5 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
An important Victorian period Giant English carriage clock, the finely chased brass case retaining its original gilding with scroll and reeded carrying handle. The silvered dial is engraved in a similar style to the case with Roman numerals, blued steel spade hands and a subsidiary seconds dial. It is signed J W Benson Ludgate Hill London. The high quality striking triple-fusee movement has heavy plates, boldly turned pillars and is keywound through shutters on the backplate. There are separate trains for striking the hours on a single bell and the quarters on six bells. It also has gilt bi-metallic compensated balance and lever escapement. The solid rear door has shutters for the winding holes and handset. The side glasses have push buttons to repeat the hours and quarters. Height : 10 in (25.5 cm) The company S.S. & J.W. Benson was formed in 1847 but after 1855 were known as J.W. Benson. They were suppliers to the Admiralty and the War Department and Makers to the Queen and the Prince of Wales. They continued to manufacture watches, clocks and chronometers until the Second World War when their workshops were lost in the London bombing. They subsequently bought in movements from outside suppliers, and eventually were sold to Garrard the Crown Jewellers in the 1970s PD01
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.
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