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Dutch Longcase Clock, Fromanteel & Clarke



Dutch Longcase Clock, Fromanteel & Clarke

Clock.
The clock features a going train on anchor escapement and a running time of one month. Movement with five pillars Dutch striking mechanism, striking the full hours on a large bell and the half hours on a smaller one.

Dial.
The dial with a gilded center and a silver-plated chapter ring with engraved silvered hours in Roman numerals and minutes in Arabic numerals. The chapter ring is embellished with gilt bronze spandrels at the corners. A seconds hand and a calendar aperture below the numeral XII; a moon phase above the VI. A plate signed ‘Fromanteel & Clarke’ above the day aperture. At the left is a fine adjustment of the speed of the going train, at the right an adjustment for the activation of the striking mechanism. All indications are in French.

Case.
The oak case is veneered overall with burr walnut and stands on four bun feet beneath a moulded plinth carrying the lower case of the clock. Above this the pendulum case with a rectangular door that is subtly arched at the top and a centred oval pendulum window. The a windowed, square door protecting the dial is flanked by rounded columns, which gives the impression that the wooden arch of the case is solely supported by the columns. The removable hood with bell top is surmounted by three giltwood finials.

Ahasverus Fromanteel (1607-1693) was the first of a family of Anglo-Dutch clockmakers. He settled in London in 1625. From his marriage in 1631 with Maria de Bruijne three sons were born. They all became prominent clockmakers and settled at Amsterdam’s Vijgendam (known today as Dam Square) in 1680. With branches in London, Amsterdam and Newcastle, the Fromanteel family business was the first multinational company in clocks. During the course of the 1980s, the three Fromanteel brothers, John, Ahasuerus II and Abraham decided to use one common signature: namely Fromanteel without initials or other details.

In 1694, Christopher Clarke (1668-c. 1730) married Anna, Ahasuerus II’s only daughter. After 1696, Ahasuerus II joined forces with his son-in-law Christopher Clarke under the name Fromanteel & Clarke. After Ahasuerus II’s death, Clarke began a partnership in 1703 with Abraham, the last remaining Fromanteel. They used the Fromanteel & Clarke signature, without the mention a branch location. Clocks were manufactured under the name Fromanteel until 1722.

Literature:
Enrico Morpurgo, Nederlandse klokkenmakers en horlogemakers vanaf 1300, 1970, p. 44

Dutch Longcase Clock, Fromanteel & Clarke
Price on request
Provenance
Christie’s London, 3 July 1991, lot 251 F. van Kollenburg Antieke Klokken, Oirschot Private Collection, Netherlands Loek van Aalst Antiquair, Breda Private Collection, Netherlands
Period
ca. 1710
Material
Oak veneered with burr walnut, gilt bronze, brass
Signature
Fromanteel & Clark
Dimensions
269 x 45 x 24 cm

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