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Joseph Knibb, London. Circa 1680-85.

Joseph Knibb, London. Circa 1680-85.

A very rare Charles II olivewood, walnut and marquetry three-month going Roman striking longcase clock.

£275,000


Height

6 feet 10½ inches (210 cms).

Case

The rising hood has a gilt-wood ball finial surmounting the ebonised swan-neck carved cresting centred by a scallop shell. The book-end moulded frieze is supported by ebony Solomonic columns to the front and back. The trunk, headed by a convex throat moulding, has a long rectangular door veneered with olivewood oysters and inlaid with geometric panels of floral marquetry with green-stained bone leaves, all within holly ovals and quarter rounds. The sides are veneered with olivewood oysters within holly border frames. Similar geometric marquetry panels are applied to the base, which is raised on ebony bun feet.

Dial

The 10½ inch square gilt-brass dial with three latched dial feet is signed Joseph Knibb Londini Fecit beneath the silvered chapter ring with Roman hour numerals, fleur-de-lys half-hour markers and Arabic minutes within the division ring, the chapter IV evidencing Roman strike. The finely matted centre has low-position winding holes and typically fine shaped and pierced blued steel hands. Foliate winged cherub spandrels adorn the four corners of the dial interspersed by delicate foliate engraving.

Movement

The three-month going movement has light break-arch brass plates secured at the front plate by six latched and finned baluster pillars. The six wheel trains are wound anticlockwise; the going train has a delicate anchor escapement with a spring-suspended pendulum regulated by a butterfly-nut atop the suspension block on the backplate and a further butterfly nut above the threaded pendulum bob. The striking train operates via a small brass countwheel planted on the backplate with Roman strike on two bells of different size, the smaller for I and the larger for V. The movement resting on seatboard taper pins into the base pillars and secured by a brass L-shaped backplate bracket, screwed to the corresponding peened iron case bracket.

Duration

Three months.

Literature

Exceptional English Clockwork, The Keith Roberts Collection, 2015, p. 120-125

Garnier & Hollis, Innovation & Collaboration, 2018, p. 316-319

Exhibited

The Grosvenor House Fair, 2007, stand 62.

London 2018, Innovation & Collaboration, exhibit no. 93.

This clock belongs to a particularly small and important group of longcases by Knibb that are three-month duration and Roman striking. As evidenced here, on his Roman striking clocks Knibb used the Roman IV on the chapter ring instead of the usual IIII, and this method has a great advantage in power saving when used in long duration movements, as it takes only 30 strikes every twelve hours compared with conventional striking which requires 78.

Each of the group are distinguished by their distinctive pattern of break-arched shaped plates and, while others of the group are housed in ebony panelled cases with 1¼ seconds pendulums, this example has a seconds pendulum and was placed in a particularly fine walnut, holly and green-stained bone marquetry case on an olivewood-oyster ground.

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Product Description

This clock belongs to a particularly small and important group of longcases by Knibb that are three-month duration and Roman striking. As evidenced here, on his Roman striking clocks Knibb used the Roman IV on the chapter ring instead of the usual IIII, and this method has a great advantage in power saving when used in long duration movements, as it takes only 30 strikes every twelve hours compared with conventional striking which requires 78.

Each of the group are distinguished by their distinctive pattern of break-arched shaped plates and, while others of the group are housed in ebony panelled cases with 1¼ seconds pendulums, this example has a seconds pendulum and was placed in a particularly fine walnut, holly and green-stained bone marquetry case on an olivewood-oyster ground.

Additional information

Dimensions 5827373 cm