10" x 14" x 10"
The Congreve, or Rolling Ball Clock, is named after its inventor Sir William Congreve and is a favourite of clock collectors. The original clock was presented to the Prince of Wales in 1808 and is part of the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace. Congreve was a prolific inventor famous for making the first solid fuel rockets at The Royal Arsenal in Woolwich in 1805 and subsequently used during the Napoleonic wars. It has been suggested that his clock was created for military purposes and the first "ball" used to trip the escapement was a musket ball!! This certainly makes sense because the principle of the mechanism is such that the accuracy is limited to +/- 15 minutes per day.
“Used in antique spring-powered mechanical watches and clocks, a fusee (from the French fusée: wire wound around a spindle) is a cone-shaped pulley with a helical groove around it, wound with a cord or chain which is attached to the mainspring barrel. Fusees were used as early as the 15th century to the early 20th century to improve timekeeping by equalizing the uneven pull of the mainspring as it ran down.” (from WIkipedia)
A stunning contemporary version of the Congreve with the rhodium plated movement mounted onto a gloss lacquered carbon fibre base.
- Hand-made, solid-brass, 8-day rhodium plated fusee movement
- Gloss lacquered carbon fibre base with key compartment
- Crystal glass mitred canopy to protect the movement
- White enamel finish dials and blue lacquered Breguet style hands indicate hours, minutes and seconds separately
- Serial numbered movement with Certificate of Authenticity
- Bespoke finish combinations available on request
- Mahogany finish presentation travel case
If you’re interested in the fine piece, please contact us at clocks@northcoastimports.com and be sure to include your zip code for a dealer in your area.
