‘Very Unusual’ 305-Year-Old Clock Stuns Owner with Four Figure Valuation

This is among the dirtier clocks I've seen. I assume it hasn't worked for a long time. Despite the fact it's grand and impressive, it's not terribly expensive. And the dial with its Ciamanti bezel. Yes, I did hope it was diamond. Rapp and Hughes, I haven't heard of. Oh yes, that was my grandfather, my grandfather's firm. And this then came straight down through the family line? Nearly, not quite. It's a funny story really because my grandfather, when he died, he forgot to make a codicil or a special note in his will to say that he wished this to come down to his granddaughter, which is me. And so in fact it all went up to a sale with all the other clocks and very fine pieces that he had. And my father had to actually go and re-bid for this clock to get it back again so that it could come down through the family. That's great. This is a very interesting, it's always interesting to find documentation. He got into clocks in quite a big way because in fact this advertising document, and this is a proof, it's very interesting, it's dated on the 1905 and there's a lovely note here and it says, Sir or Madam, we respectfully beg to draw your attention to our yearly winding and repairing by contract. This is the bit I like, many valuable clocks etc have been rendered useless for want of skilful and practical attention. It's wonderful. My mother keeps the clock in her house and in fact it is wound and it keeps very, very good time. It's never needed any adjustment or any repair. Well I was about to say that, but what happened to the case? It's green. What's the key? No, it's green. The case is all gone green. I don't know. They'd all want re-gilding, doesn't it? Yeah, in fact it's not too bad. The clock itself is French. Yes, French and quite late in the last century, probably around about 1885. We call them four glass clocks for the very logical reason that there are one, two, three, four glasses in the case and usually they're much plainer than this. This one is a particularly elaborate case and the dial with its diamante bezel. Yes, I did hope it was diamond. No, it's very much diamantes. Now if you look at the inside of the case, clearly because the doors have been shut except for when you wind it, the gilding of course has survived very well, whereas on the outside I suspect at some time there's been some very acidic atmosphere and you've actually got green verdigris. Yes, it's bad. That's very bad. I knew that. The answer is it wouldn't be too bad a thing to have it re-gilded, providing you can get it done by somebody who can get the colour correct. But would I need to use an expert to have it gilded or could I do it? Oh, you definitely need an expert. Well, I work. I'm an illuminator. I work with gold. This is electro-gilding. This is done by electro-gilding. It's done by placing the rarest parts of the clock into a solution of gold, dissolved in some very unpleasant chemicals, passing an electric current through and the gold is basically attracted onto the surface of the metal. A very good expert. So I've been very wise not to touch it. It's bothered me because it looks rather derelict, doesn't it? We'll take very good advice before you do it. Yes. But financially it's worth doing. I suppose you would have to pay for this tarted up, if we can use that word in its best sense. You'd have to pay well over two thousand pounds. That's more than the clock's worth. Oh no, it's worth that. Not to have it done. No, that's what it's worth. What we've got here, of course, is a small collection of absolutely the typical type of watches that turn up every road show. The problem is, of course, that everybody had a granny and a grandpa and most of them have got the watches and so although they're marvellous pieces of work, this little one here is a typical granny watch from 1900. Beautifully engraved, probably still working immaculately, but fifty pounds or less. So this is a very, as you said, very handsome collection. Some of these, to my innocent eye, look terribly expensive. What would you advise people to do with bringing in their watches to avoid disappointment? Well, it's difficult really to say because there isn't, of course, an easy way of looking on the bottom and saying it's marked like this so therefore it's fifty pounds or a hundred pounds. I'm afraid one just has to have to bring them along and we have to have a look because there's always that chance there's going to be something inside that's going to make it valuable. Always that chance. This is probably one of the most intriguing clocks that I've ever seen on a road show. Just looking at it, you almost feel its perpetual motion, don't you? Yes. Do you actually know how it works? Well, I think it works with the slight movement of this here. But not discernible to the naked eye as such? No, no. Well, let's just take the thing from an overall point of view. You'll probably know that it's French. Yes. Because it's obviously French in style very much more than it is English. And we have a spelter base with a little bit of black marble there and then this lovely spelter lady supporting the clock on her two outstretched arms. So the eye is immediately drawn to this fantastic pendulum and fantastic it is because it is slowly revolving rather like the hairspring of a watch in slow motion one way and then to the other. And up through this rod is somehow making the clock go. And this is the mystery. This is why we're calling it a mystery clock. Now the retailer's name is Jenkinson & Sons Paris. Have you ever had the back off before and looked into it? I haven't. You haven't. I don't know whether you can see but there's a little escapement arm there and every second something is released just to let it on. But if I accentuate the movement of the pendulum here, if I go like that and move with my forefinger and thumb, you can see how that then is moving on a lot quicker. So as you pointed out earlier it is the movement of that that is actually stopping and starting the clock escapement. I think it's very very intriguing. Have you had it at home a long time? We've had it for about 15 years. And before then do you know where it's whereabouts was? Well originally the then Dean of Lincoln gave it to my husband's grandfather in lieu of a debt. I think it must have been a property. Right. Well the date of manufacture of this would have been in the late 1880s. Price wise, well I'll be quite honest and say it's the first of these examples I've ever seen in the flesh. You would be very very hard pushed to go out tomorrow and find another one in as good condition as this. So we're talking six to eight thousand pounds. Thank you very much. Thank you. Well I really am rather regretting wearing a white shirt today because I do have to say this is among the dirtier clocks I've seen because I assume it hasn't worked for a long time. Is that right? It's about 17 years. It's not worked since my father died. Well my advice to you is don't try and get it working now. It'll need a bit of cleaning before that. Well let's turn it around then. It's a nice eight day movement. Put it back in the case and we'll start with the dial because not only is the movement dirty, so is the dial. But there's a reason for that. The brass dial plate will naturally get dirty over time but sometimes the silvered, this is a process by which you silver these dials, the silvered dial someone has tried to clean it. In cleaning it what they've done is worn away the silver and think oh dear what do I do about it now best to leave it and the result is now you've got half of it silvered and the rest of it all rather patchy and brassy. However having said that look at the rest of it. This is really a beautifully maintained case. Do you polish it? Yes. You've done very very well indeed. That looks really super. It's a really wonderful case, lovely oak case. One word of advice though. I noticed on the inside here earlier when you come to wind it there's the key but take that string off and throw it away or burn it. The most damage is always done to a clock is when you put this in there and wind it and the string wraps itself around one of the hands and you turn it around again you snap the hands off. Now it hasn't happened with these. These hands are entirely original so my advice is get rid of that string very quickly indeed. Right now we come to the hood of the case which I'll put back on. Now there's another thing about this that puzzled me and that is the frieze at the top there. Now this is very common because this is a clock made by David Collier of Gatley which is just south of Manchester and this is the style of clock the style of case you would find in Lancashire and Cheshire. Right in the middle though you have a little cockerel and the date very helpfully there 1766 so we know when it was made there. Have you any idea why a cockerel was there? There's something to do with waking you up. Waking up? Well possibly, very possibly. Do you see this bit in the centre there? Yes. That moves round. Have you ever wondered what that was? It's not an alarm is it? It's an alarm. It's an alarm clock. That's the way you set the alarm. Well I never knew that. Well there you go. You see if you wanted to go up at four o'clock there's the four. You move the four to under the tail of the hour hand and it would strike at four o'clock. Well the next question is is it actually worth restoring? The answer certainly is. How much is it going to cost? You will certainly get no change whatever out of 500 pounds. You might not even get any change out of a thousand pounds in restoring it but well worth it and if this clock was to be seen in a good antique shop somewhere certainly it's going to be in excess of six thousand seven thousand pounds for a clock like this. It really is a stunning piece. Do you live in a house that it fits into well? The dining room is tall enough to take this big piece of furniture and I have a lot of big pieces. I had the opportunity to buy them in the early 60s when you could pick them up for very little. How much? This costs seven pounds ten, ten shillings and it cost about eight pounds to carry it on a flat back pickup truck. Right it is absolutely typical of the enormous clocks that were made locally for the newly rich mill owners. They wanted something big and bold to show that they had made it but in a funny sort of way despite the fact it's grand and impressive it's not terribly expensive because in fact as a clock it has almost no interest at all. Horologically it is nothing. The dial and movement were almost certainly made in Birmingham and they were sent up here to order to Mr Smith's order and simply painted up and put into a locally made case around about 1840 much later than people think. In fact I didn't realize it was as old as that. Oh right really? When people see this highly figured mahogany with this gothic shaping to it people think ah that's going to be a late regency clock i.e 1820s 1830s something like that. It isn't. This is pure high victorian could even be as late as 1860. Right I see. But it's a wonderful wonderful example of a local clock. Oh good. These things have only just become of any value at all. All the nice little clocks have gone. People are turning to these. Even the door is nicely panelled. You've lost a piece of moulding there but that's nothing. It's a well-made item. Yes. And so the good news is it is not worth just the five pounds or the seven pounds ten shillings. In a sale now one as good as this would make the best part of two thousand pounds. Certainly make over a thousand. Yeah it's a good thing.