German Grande Sonnerie Wall Clock

A good quality “factory-made” German wall clock. Note the boxier shape of the case that became standard for these clocks. The adornments and carvings are heavier in feel, replacing the elegance and airy feeling of the earlier Vienna regulators.

Gustav Becker was trained as a clockmaker in Germany and Austria and is known for his immensely successful clock manufacturing enterprise. At the height of his success, Gustav Becker was producing more than 400 varieties of clocks reflecting the furniture trends of the day. He maintained workshops of skilled artisans and carvers who produced excellent clock cases. Although factory-produced at the height of the company’s success, the movements are robust and still in use. Gustav Becker died in 1885, but clocks bore his trademark until 1935. The Junghans Company absorbed Becker, Lenzkirch (another successful German clock manufacturing company), Hamburg American and other companies into a clock company that continues to this day.