Clocks · Bracket clock
Quarter chiming ebonised bracket clock by Christopher Pinchbeck
- Maker / attribution
- Christopher Pinchbeck (maker)
- Date
- c. 1730
- Historical period
- Early Modern Horology (1600 – 1750)
- Country of origin
- Unrecorded in source
- Object type
- Bracket clock
- Materials / technique
- ebonised
- Dimensions
- Height 53 cm
- Stock no.
- Product 3316
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, The Antique Clock Company (product 3316)
- Catalogue title (original)
- QUARTER CHIMING EBONISED BRACKET CLOCK – CHRISTOPHER PINCHBECK (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by The Antique Clock Company (dealer), Dorset (stock number Product 3316), this is a bracket clock by Christopher Pinchbeck, dated c. 1730. The Atlas places it in the Early Modern Horology period (1600 – 1750) of its Clocks collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: ebonised. Recorded dimensions: Height 53 cm. The record is illustrated with 3 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 — The Antique Clock Company
This exquisite 8-day ebonised bracket clock features a three-train fusee movement with verge escapement and rack striking. It has an impressive quarter striking mechanism, chiming the quarters on six bells or two bells, and a grand hour chime on an additional bell, enhanced by a pull quarter repeating function. The clock case is crafted in ebonised wood with an arched brass-framed dial, decorated with silvered elements including matted centre, Roman numerals, cherub and scroll spandrels, and subsidiary dials. These sub-dials include calendar aperture and a pendulum aperture with engraved details. Signed “Chr. Pinchbeck, London” on a silvered plaque below the silvered chapter ring, this timepiece is an authentic piece from Christopher Pinchbeck I, a renowned clockmaker who lived from 1670 to 1732. This piece not only reflects masterful horology but is also a tribute to one of London’s most respected clockmakers. Christopher Pinchbeck I was a celebrated English clockmaker and inventor, best known for creating a unique alloy known as “Pinchbeck,” which closely resembled gold. This material, made from a mixture of copper and zinc, allowed the creation of affordable yet luxurious-looking items in an era when gold was both costly and heavily regulated. His invention became so widely recognized and admired that the term “Pinchbeck” became synonymous with imitation gold. As a master clockmaker based in London, Pinchbeck crafted fine clocks and watches with remarkable skill and precision. His clocks often featured complex mechanisms, such as quarter repeating and striking trains, and showcased intricate dials with silvered elements and engraved decorations. Pinchbeck’s work was highly regarded for its quality and innovation, making his timepieces sought-after treasures among collectors. After Pinchbeck’s death in 1732, his son, Christopher Pinchbeck II, continued the family business, further enhancing the legacy of the Pinchbeck name in horology. Today, clocks and watches by Christopher Pinchbeck I are rare and valuable, cherished for their craftsmanship, historical significance, and association with the famous Pinchbeck alloy. Height: 21″ or 53 cm
Provenance
Private collection, UK
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
Bracket, table and spring-driven clocks
Spring-driven clocks freed timekeeping from the hanging weight. The coiled mainspring, documented from the fifteenth century, made portable table clocks possible; to even out its declining force, makers used the fusee, a conical pulley connected to the barrel by a gut line or chain. Renaissance table clocks from Augsburg and Nuremberg — drum-shaped, square or tower-shaped in gilt brass — were luxury scientific objects, often with astronomical dials and alarms.
After the pendulum, English makers developed the bracket clock: a wooden case with a carrying handle, a short pendulum with a verge escapement, and often repeating work to sound the hours on demand at night. Later examples use the anchor escapement. In the nineteenth century, 'table clock' became a broad term for spring clocks of every nationality.
What to look for
- A fusee in the movement (cone-shaped pulley) and the type of line — gut or chain.
- Verge escapement with a short bob pendulum, often with a decoratively engraved backplate.
- Repeat cords or buttons that make the clock strike again on demand.
- Gilt-brass engraved cases and horizontal dials on Renaissance pieces.
- Case shapes: inverted bell, bell top, break-arch, lancet or balloon.
Dating clues
- Drum and tower table clocks: c. 1520–1650.
- Ebony veneered English bracket clocks with verge escapements: c. 1670–1800.
- Engraved backplates were usual on English clocks until c. 1800, then generally plain.
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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