Clock That Pre-dates The Fire of London Sells For World Record at Bonhams for £144,000
Published June 20th, 2007
A rare and important lantern clock, dating back to the reign of James I (1603 – 1625), was sold for £144,000 at Bonhams in London today (19.6.07) – a world record price for a clock of this kind. Made by William Bowyer in 1623, the brass clock was estimated to fetch between £30,000 – 50,000 at Bonhams Sale of Fine Clocks. The sale of 110 clocks made a total of £546,096. “This magnificent lantern clock is undoubtedly one of the finest still in private hands today,” explains James Stratton, Director of Bonhams Clocks and Watches Department. The date of manufacture of 1623 puts it firmly in the first few years of the production of the type of timekeeper that has come to be known as the English lantern clock. Horologically speaking, the clock pre-dates the pendulum, the anchor escapement and rack striking. In a wider context, James I was King of England, the Clockmakers Company had not yet been established and the English Civil War, the Fire of London and the Great Plague were decades away. The engraved side doors of this clock are the only pair known to have survived from this First Period, and offer us two of the most memorable engraved pieces of brass in horology. I was not that surprised by the price. We were expecting it to do well.
