A very rare French gilt-bronze late nineteenth-century giant four-gong carriage clock. The massive case is a variation of the Anglaise Riche style and has a flared and stepped base, dentil work, a fluted hinged handle, detached fluted columns with Corinthian capitals, well-cast finials, five beveled glasses including the viewing glass for the balance and four bold toupie feet.

The eight-day grand-sonnerie striking movement is wound and set out the back, has a three position strike control lever out the base, retains its original balance platform with a bi-metallic balance wheel, is inscribed on the inside of the backplate ‘AB’, is stamped ‘3060’ and strikes the hours and quarters on four steel coiled gongs either on each quarter automatically or by pressing the repeat button above. The first quarter of the strike pattern is identical to the Westminster chime and probably is why these clocks are commonly referred to as Westminster carriage clocks. They all do not continue, however, the Westminster chiming sequence, but merely reverse the sequence of notes for each subsequent quarter