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Clocks · Wall clock

Wall clock by Jump, London, c. 1880

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Jump (maker)
Date
c. 1880
Country of origin
England
Place
London
Object type
Wall clock
Materials / technique
mahogany
Dimensions
Height 14 in (36 cm)
Stock no.
Product 241
Credit line
Dealer listing, P A Oxley (product 241)
Catalogue title (original)
High Quality Antique Wall Clock by Jump of London (English)

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Record summary

Catalogued by P A Oxley (dealer), Wiltshire (stock number Product 241), this is a wall clock by Jump, made in London, England, dated c. 1880. The Atlas places it in the Industrial Revolution period (1850 – 1900) of its Clocks collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: mahogany. Recorded dimensions: Height 14 in (36 cm). The record is illustrated with 2 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 high quality late 19th century antique Wall Clock. The 8 day duration single fusee movement with anchor escapement and featuring a heavy brass cased pendulum bob as used by Vulliamy. The 12" round flat white dial with Roman numerals, blued steel hands and signed by the maker Jump, London. The light coloured mahogany case with access doors to the base and the side of the case, the bottom door with a lock. The cast brass bezel with a flat bevelled glass, silvered brass sight ring and a lock to the side. Note: Joseph Jump was apprenticed to the famous maker Benjamin Lewis Vulliamy in 1827. During the 1850s when Vulliamy died, Joseph and his brother Alfred continued the business. He later joined forces with Henry Jump and they continued together until 1899 when Henry died. During their time together they worked at 55 Pall Mall and 11 Old Bond Street. In the early 20th century the Jump Clockmakers were Clockmakers to the King. Maker Jump of London

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

Regulators, wall and Vienna clocks

A regulator is a precision pendulum clock used as a time standard in observatories, workshops and railway offices. Typical features are a deadbeat or Graham escapement, a temperature-compensated pendulum (mercury jar, gridiron or later invar), maintaining power and a regulator dial that separates hours, minutes and seconds. George Graham's deadbeat escapement (c. 1715) and his mercury pendulum, together with Harrison's gridiron, set the pattern for two centuries.

Wall clocks span a much wider range: the elegant Viennese Laterndluhr and Dachluhr of the Biedermeier period, the Dutch stoelklok and staartklok, English 'dial' clocks used in schools, offices and railway stations, and mass-produced spring and weight wall clocks from Germany (Gustav Becker, Junghans, Kienzle) and America.

What to look for

  • Deadbeat escapement and compensated pendulum (gridiron rods, mercury jar or wood rod).
  • A regulator dial with a large central minute hand and separate hour and seconds dials.
  • Vienna regulators: glazed cases, slender pendulum, small weights, enamel two-piece dials.
  • German factory trademarks stamped on the backplate (e.g. Gustav Becker anchor and crown, Junghans star).

Dating clues

  • Graham-type deadbeat regulators: from c. 1720.
  • Viennese Laterndluhr: c. 1800–1850.
  • German factory 'Vienna-style' regulators: c. 1870–1930; Gustav Becker serial numbers allow close dating.

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 escapementGrasshopper escapement

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