JOHANNES FROMANTEEL, LONDON: AN IMPORTANT CHARLES II SILVER MOUNTED ARCHITECTURAL LONGCASE CLOCK

Details

JOHANNES FROMANTEEL, LONDON: AN IMPORTANT CHARLES II SILVER MOUNTED ARCHITECTURAL LONGCASE CLOCK
circa 1670-72
The convex moulded case with plinth on bun feet, silver eagle head escutcheon to rectangular trunk door with three raised panels and hung directly on the sides of the case, similarly panelled sides, silver cartouche to tympanum of the pedimented flat top rising hood with spoon-and-clip, supported on twist columns with silver composite capitals, centred with silver ribbon tied flower and acanthus mounts flanking a silver gilt head of Flora, the 8¾ x 9in. copper gilt dial signed Johannes Fromanteel; Londini fecit. beneath the slender silver faced chapter ring, the matted centre with calendar aperture, large diameter subsidiary seconds ring with blued tulip hand, pierced blued hour and minute hands, silver winged cherub spandrels, latches to the dial feet and to the four ringed pillar movement with early anchor escapement, inside countwheel strike and bolt-and-shutter maintaining power
6ft.2¼in. (188.5cm.) high

Provenance

J Dunn Gardner Esq., Denston Hall, Suffolk
Mrs Miriam Leader, his daughter, sold Sotheby & Co., 15 July 1955, lot 105

Literature

Percy Macquoid & Ralph Edward, The Dictionary of English Furniture, 1st ed. 1924, Vol.II, p.102, fig.10 & rev.ed. 1954, Vol I, p.84, fig.13

P G Dawson, C R Drover & D M Parkes, Early English Clocks, 1982
col.pl.7, pl.175, 176, 228, pp.136, 159, 170

Exhibited

The First Twelve Years of the Pendulum Clock, No.27, Loan Exhibition, R A Lee, 1969

Lot Essay

Johannes Fromanteel, London, Apprenticed 1651, Clockmakers' Company 1663-81, entered service of Salomon Coster in the Hague from Sept.1657 to May 1658, where he learnt the secret of applying the pendulum to clocks as devised by Huygens.

The design of the anchor in this clock makes it one of the earliest longcase clocks with a fully developed recoil escapement. This then necessitates a wider trunk which is extremely rare when used in conjunction with the early architectural case style. Having a developed anchor meant that a seconds ring became fully justified and so this seconds dial must then be one of the earliest known to be used in conjunction with the anchor escapement.
It is also one of the very few clocks of this date that was made with silver mounts. Presumably it was the buyers depth of pocket that decided the opulence of the mounts; it have been considerably more expensive to use silver for its use when off-set against the ebony veneer enhances its looks considerably

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