Quarter-Chiming and Musical Skeleton Clock

A rare musical skeleton clock with Vulliamy-type deadbeat escapement and rating nut for fine calibration. Quarter chime plays on eight nested bells. The musical cylinder movement activates 38 hammers playing on 20 bells, playing a sequence of eight tunes, with movement stamped Nicole Freres.

With its finely engraved plates and chains descending to the base this exceptional skeleton clock is attractive viewed from the front or rear, unlike most skeleton clocks of the period. It is therefore likely that it was made to sit on a pedestal or center table rather than on a mantel. The indirect winding system is
ingenious, eliminating the need to remove a cumbersome glass dome. Very few musical skeleton clocks were made, both because of the high cost of manufacture and also because the large number of components made "skeletonizing" difficult. The maker of the present clock has resolved this issue by
placing the music work in the plinth and also by positioning the quarter bells face-on so they are less visible.