Clock case by Frederic Vidal, Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, 1800–1899 (National Museum of Art of Catalonia https___catalonica_bnc_cat_catalonicahub_lod_H715285_ent0) — view 1 of 1
View 1 of 1 · Image: National Museum of Art of Catalonia · original image source

Movements & Components · Clock case

Clock case by Frederic Vidal, Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, 1800–1899 (National Museum of Art of Catalonia https___catalonica_bnc_cat_catalonicahub_lod_H715285_ent0)

DocumentedDocumented from the holding institution's catalogue record.
Maker / attribution
Frederic Vidal (creator)
Date
1800–1899
Country of origin
Unrecorded in source
Place
Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
Object type
Clock case
Accession / object no.
https___catalonica_bnc_cat_catalonicahub_lod_H715285_ent0
Catalogue title (original)
Clock case (English)

View the source record ↗

Record summary

Held and catalogued by National Museum of Art of Catalonia (object number https___catalonica_bnc_cat_catalonicahub_lod_H715285_ent0), this is a clock case by Frederic Vidal, made in Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, dated 1800–1899. The Atlas places it in the Precision & Scientific Horology period (1750 – 1850) of its Movements & Components collection. The record is illustrated with 1 photograph.

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

The source record does not include a narrative description. The structured fields above are reproduced from it.

Historical context

Precision & Scientific Horology (1750 – 1850)

Harrison solves longitude; Mudge invents the lever; Breguet's Paris workshop defines the modern watch.

The age of escapement invention: cylinder, duplex, lever, detent and many experimental escapements; compensation balances and fine finishing.

Read the period in the timelineMore movements & components from this periodEarlier: Early Modern Horology

Atlas type guide

Cases, keys and accessories

Clock and watch cases protect the movement and express taste and status. Watch cases were made by separate specialist case-makers whose marks, along with assay hallmarks, help to date and place them. Clock cases were the work of cabinet-makers, bronze founders, ceramic factories and silversmiths, so they belong as much to the history of decorative arts as to horology.

Keys, chatelaines, watch stands, watch papers and winding tools are part of the material culture of timekeeping: they show how timepieces were worn, displayed, wound and maintained.

What to look for

  • Case maker's sponsor's marks and assay hallmarks in gold and silver cases.
  • Materials: shagreen, tortoiseshell, enamel, porcelain, jasperware, gilt bronze.
  • Breguet-style ratchet keys, crank keys and watch-key fobs.
  • Engraved names, presentations and dates.

Dating clues

  • English hallmark date letters allow exact dating of the case assay.
  • Porcelain cases from Meissen and Sèvres: mostly eighteenth century.

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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