Lewis Walduck
Cataloguer
Lot 127
A mid 19th century Japanese weight-driven Hashira-dokei wall clock
2 July 2025, 13:00 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £4,864 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our Clocks specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
A mid 19th century Japanese weight-driven Hashira-dokei wall clock
The case surmounted by a butterfly nut securing the deep bell with pronounced internal lip over a visible verge foliot bar with adjustable timing weights, with iron top and bottom plates united by square-section posts, on octagonal feet, the slightly textured rectangular brass dial with a fixed copper hand reading against twelve adjustable numerals over an aperture, the sides fitted with doors opening to reveal the crown wheel (pallet arbor mounted from the bell stand on silk) and countwheel striking. Running and striking. Together with an ebonised wall bracket, lines with counter-weights and two driving weights. 26cms (10.5ins) high.
Footnotes
The Japanese temporal system of timekeeping divided the days and nights into two sets of six 'hours'. As the seasons changed, so obviously did the length of each of these 'hours'; the summer had longer daylight hours and shorter night-time hours for instance. The foliot balance with a series of notches and a pair of movable weights allowed easy regulation of the timekeeping, but required adjustment twice a day at the end of each six hour period. The current lot uses a double foliot system which automatically changes from one foliot to the other at the end of each six hour period.
A similar clock is illustrated on page 757 in Tardy La Pendule Francaise
Additional information
Bid now on these items
