Dent of London Grande Sonnerie Carriage Clock

An excellent French gorge cased grande sonnerie carriage clock dated c.1850, the dial signed for the retailer DENT, 33 COCKSPUR STREET, LONDON.

The perfectly presented re-gilded gorge case has the typical “pinched” corners and a large top glass to view the platform. The movement retains its original lever platform escapement of exceptional high quality. The silvered platform is engine-turned on both sides, with a polished silvered end-piece. Its unusual design is identical to that illustrated on P.118 of Allix & Bonnert’s Carriage Clocks and Their Developments, which belongs to Drocourt grande sonnerie clock, no. 28436. The condition of the case and all five bevelled glasses is perfect.

The eight day movement has a selection lever in the base for Gde Sonnerie / Silence / Pte Sonnerie.
Selecting Grande Sonnerie gives the quarter, half and three-quarter hour ting-tang strike on two gongs following the hour strike.
The petite sonnerie option gives a ting-tang strike on the quarters, with the hour (on one gong) only at the full hour.

The backplate bears the serial number 8370, and the base of the case is stamped with the same serial number.

The perfect white enamel dial is set into a satin gilt mask – it has Arabic numerals within a minute track, over a small alarm dial below, also with arabic numerals.

To be overhauled and guaranteed for 3 years.

• Height: 7 inches with the handle up

The retailers:

Dent of London is a reknowned company of clockmakers established in 1814, who were commissioned to make the Standard Clock at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich which was to keep “Greenwich Mean Time”  the time to which all others in the Empire were referred. In 1852, they were awarded the contract to make London’s “Big Ben” clock. They were also awarded a Royal warrants by Queen Victoria,  later renewed by Edward VII and George V. A skeleton clock presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in November 2007 can today be found in the Garden Room at Buckingham Palace.

E J Dent (and later MF Dent) traded from these premises in Cockspur Street from 1843 – c.1861.