The longcase clock is widely regarded as representing the zenith of English Clockmaking. The quality of the movements and casework on English longcases is renowned. The earliest longcases were produced in London, though by around 1700 there were a number of provincial makers operating in Liverpool, Oxford and many other towns outside London.

The advent of the longcase, as with the bracket clock, was largely the product of practical necessity. To run for longer duration, clocks increasingly required heavier weights and long pendulums. Tall wooden cases were devised to provide a suitably dust free and stable home for them.

Stylistically changes in longcase clocks followed a clear trajectory. The first generations of longcase clocks had simple pedimented architectural hoods, and were veneered in ebony, olivewood or walnut. The earliest movements had short bob pendulums and verge escapements. These earliest longcase clocks had square dials, with break arch dials common after about 1715.

Over time longcase clocks grew in height – early examples from the late seventeenth century were generally around six feet, whilst London examples from the mid-eighteenth century, which were mostly in mahogany and occasionally in walnut or lacquer, were as tall as seven feet or more.

Raffety and Walwyn specialise in English longcase clocks and we have a number of the finest examples in our collection which you can view below.