Clocks · Mantel clock
Mantel clock by Franz Xavier Gegenreiner, Germany, case ca. 1710, movement ca. 1760–70
- Maker / attribution
- Franz Xavier Gegenreiner (Maker); Johann Andreas Thelot (Maker)
- Date
- case ca. 1710, movement ca. 1760–70
- Historical period
- Early Modern Horology (1600 – 1750)
- Country of origin
- Germany
- Object type
- Mantel clock
- Materials / technique
- Case: tortoiseshell backed with brass leaf, pearwood veneered with rosewood; and partly gilded silver; Movement: gilded brass and steel
- Dimensions
- wt. confirmed: 31 3/4 × 17 × 11 1/4 in., 31 lb. (80.6 × 43.2 × 28.6 cm, 14.1 kg)
- Holding institution
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
- Accession / object no.
- 46.162
- Credit line
- Rogers Fund, 1946
- Catalogue title (original)
- Mantel clock with alarm
Record summary
Held and catalogued by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (object number 46.162), this is a mantel clock by Franz Xavier Gegenreiner, made in Germany, dated case ca. 1710, movement ca. 1760–70. The Atlas places it in the Early Modern Horology period (1600 – 1750) of its Clocks collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: Case: tortoiseshell backed with brass leaf, pearwood veneered with rosewood; and partly gilded silver; Movement: gilded brass and steel. Recorded dimensions: wt. confirmed: 31 3/4 × 17 × 11 1/4 in., 31 lb. (80.6 × 43.2 × 28.6 cm, 14.1 kg). 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
The source record does not include a narrative description. The structured fields above are reproduced from it.
Historical context
Early Modern Horology (1600 – 1750)
Huygens' pendulum and balance spring transform accuracy; English makers develop the anchor and deadbeat escapements.
Huygens's pendulum (1656–57) improved clock accuracy from about a quarter of an hour to under a minute a day. The anchor escapement (c. 1670) and the long seconds pendulum created the longcase clock; London makers such as Fromanteel, Knibb, Tompion and Quare led European clockmaking, and French makers created the Boulle pendule.
Read the period in the timelineMore clocks from this periodEarlier: Renaissance Horology
Atlas type guide
Mantel and French pendule clocks
The mantel clock — the French pendule de cheminée — is as much decorative art as timekeeper. From the late seventeenth century Parisian clockmakers worked with cabinet-makers, bronze founders and gilders (ciseleurs-doreurs) to create cases in Boulle marquetry, gilt bronze and marble, while the movements were often supplied by specialist makers. Clocks of the Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI periods, and Empire clocks with allegorical figures, set fashions copied across Europe.
The nineteenth century industrialised the type. The 'Paris movement', a standardised round movement with silk-thread or Brocot suspension and count-wheel striking, was made in huge numbers by firms such as Japy and Vincenti, and fitted into cases of every style and material.
What to look for
- Round 'Paris' movements with makers' stamps (e.g. Japy Frères, Vincenti, S. Marti) and medal marks from exhibitions.
- Suspension type: silk thread (earlier) or Brocot adjustable suspension (after c. 1840).
- Visible Brocot escapement on the dial in later clocks.
- Fire-gilt (mercury) gilding on bronzes versus later electro-gilding.
- Signed dials naming a retailer rather than the movement maker.
Dating clues
- Silk-suspension Paris movements: c. 1800–1850.
- Brocot suspension and visible escapements: after c. 1840.
- Exhibition medal stamps on movements give dates after the medal year.
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:Anchor (recoil) escapement
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