Clocks · Longcase clock
Large London longcase clock by William Blackburn, London, c. 1785
- Maker / attribution
- William Blackburn (maker)
- Date
- c. 1785
- Historical period
- Precision & Scientific Horology (1750 – 1850)
- Country of origin
- England
- Place
- London
- Object type
- Longcase clock
- Materials / technique
- mahogany
- Dimensions
- Height 9 ft 3 in (282 cm)
- Stock no.
- Product 137
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, P A Oxley (product 137)
- Catalogue title (original)
- Large London Longcase Clock by William Blackburn of London (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by P A Oxley (dealer), Wiltshire (stock number Product 137), this is a longcase clock by William Blackburn, made in London, England, dated c. 1785. The Atlas places it in the Precision & Scientific Horology period (1750 – 1850) of its Clocks collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: mahogany. Recorded dimensions: Height 9 ft 3 in (282 cm). The record is illustrated with 4 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 — P A Oxley
A rare and impressive London longcase clock of unusually large proportions. The 8 day duration five pillar movement strikes the hours on a bell and features a recoil anchor escapement. The rare 14" arched brass dial displays both Seconds, Date, Strike/Silent facility to the arch and a profusely engraved silvered brass centre. All surrounded with case brass spandrels. The impressive high quality mahogany case with excellent flame veneers throughout and brass capped reeded pillars to the trunk and also to the base above a double shaped plinth and raised panel. The hood also features the same brass capped angle pillars and original sound frets. The broken arch top has a removable pagoda top with 3 brass finials of unusual design. Height: With Pagoda 9'3" / Without Pagoda 7'10" / C.1780 Note: London longcase clock dials are normally only 12 inches across. Its very rare to find such a large dial being used in London. Subsequently they have also increased the size of the cabinet work to match the dial size. The result is an extremely imposing longcase clock which would be perfect in a large reception, hallway or living room. Maker William Blackburn of London
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 the deadbeat escapement, compensated pendulums and observatory regulators. Domestic clocks spread through the middle classes: English longcase and bracket clocks, French gilt-bronze mantel clocks, Viennese Biedermeier wall clocks, Black Forest painted-shield clocks, and the first American shelf clocks.
Read the period in the timelineMore clocks from this periodEarlier: Early Modern Horology
Atlas type guide
Longcase (tall-case or grandfather) clocks
The longcase clock was born from two seventeenth-century innovations: Christiaan Huygens's pendulum (1656–57) and the anchor escapement (c. 1670). A long seconds pendulum, nearly a metre long, swings with a small arc, and enclosing it together with the driving weights in a tall wooden case protected the mechanism and created a new piece of furniture. London makers such as Ahasuerus Fromanteel, Thomas Tompion and Joseph Knibb set the pattern.
By the eighteenth century longcase clocks were made throughout Britain, the Netherlands, Scandinavia (the Swedish Mora clock), France (the Comtoise from the Franche-Comté), Germany and colonial America. Eight-day movements with two weights became standard in better clocks; thirty-hour clocks with one weight and a rope or chain were cheaper alternatives.
What to look for
- Winding holes in the dial: two (eight-day, going and striking) or none (thirty-hour, pulled up by a chain).
- Brass dials with applied chapter rings (earlier) versus painted iron 'white' dials (after c. 1770 in Britain).
- Moon-phase arches, date apertures, seconds dials and maker's name on the dial.
- Case woods and style: ebonised, walnut marquetry, lacquer, oak or mahogany; regional styles from London, Lancashire, Scotland or America.
- Whether the movement and dial match the case — 'marriages' are common.
Dating clues
- Square brass dials suggest c. 1670–1720; arched brass dials c. 1715–1790.
- Painted (white) dials were made by Birmingham dial-makers from about 1772.
- Comtoise clocks with repoussé pendulums are mostly nineteenth 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.
Read next:Deadbeat escapementAnchor escapement
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