Robert Roskell, London.

The case influenced by George Bullock, London.

Movements and case stamped by Thwaites – 7127.

The large imposing English musical bracket clock in the Graeco-Egyptian taste has a high-quality time and strike clock movement above and a wonderful musical movement below that plays every hour on the hour for an entire day.

The large two-part ebonized and mahogany case is connected via screws at the back. The base has brickwork corners, a fabric backed fret on the back and stands on ball feet. The tapered top case has horizontally fluted ebonized corner pieces, a gadrooned top with a pineapple finial, large scrolls to the sides, decorative metal work and frets to the sides.

The large 8 in. circular painted dial has Roman numerals for the hours, shaped brass hands and is signed ‘Robert Roskell, London’.

The large brass double-fusee clock movement has rectangular plates with corner feet, decorative border engraving that is carried through all the applied parts including the brackets and pendulum hold, an anchor escapement, strikes on a bell at the hour and activates the music box below via linkage from a lever off the backplate every hour. The front plate has 7127 stamped into one of the feet and the case carries the same number on the back door sill. The pendulum is suspended by a steel suspension spring, can be fixed by a large knurled screw against a shaped bracket and is adjusted for fast slow by a knurled nut against an indexed scale.

The fusee musical movement is mounted in the base, has a 13.5 in. pinned cylinder that is 1.5 in. in. diameter, has individually screwed teeth, is activated automatically from above and is wound and also manually controlled out the side via three brass levers through an engraved brass plaque. The musical movement will play for about 50 seconds per tune each hour for 24 hours.

There are two repair marks inscribed on the back of the dial plate.

DAB – 23/3/44,  MS – 6/6/25

Both the movement and case were made by Thwaites and carry the serial number 7127 which dates them to 1824.

This clock is illustrated and described in ‘The Georgian Bracket Clock’, Barder, pgs. 180, 207-208.

The Thwaites serial numbers, and corresponding dates are listed in ‘English Dial Clocks’ by Ronald Rose.