Peter Chapeau, London

A small George II ebonised table timepiece made for the bedroom with silent verge escapement and pull quarter repeating on two bells.

Beautifully engraved backplate. Peter Chapeau was working in London circa 1726-46. Some fine watches are known by him but very few clocks. It is likely he was a French Huguenot and may have been mostly employed as a journeyman for the likes of Claude DuChesne or Simon DeCharmes. 

Case

The ebonised bell top case with brass carrying handle, pierced wood sound frets to the front door with raised mouldings surrounding the dial aperture and break-arch side windows. Cavetto moulding to the plinth with block feet.

Dial

The five inch brass break arch brass dial with tilt spandrels, calendar aperture above the winding hole to the matted dial and false pendulum aperture below XII. Silvered chapter ring with Roman hour numerals, fleur-de-lys half hour markers and Arabic five minutes beyond the minute track. The break arch signed Peter Chapeau London to the dial with applied moulded collar flanked by gilt spandrels.

Movement

The eight day five pillar single chain fusee movement with verge escapement incorporating silent sprung pallets and short bob pendulum. The silent’ pull-quarter repeat sounding the hour and quarters on two bells. The backplate engraved with symmetrical entwined vine scrollwork around a central signature Peter Chapeau London over a basket of fruit,

This clock is designed to sound the hours and quarters on two bells, only on demand, by pulling a cord. This form of quarter repeat mechanism is thought to have been devised for timepieces destined for night-time use in the bedroom; whilst striking clocks with quarter repeat facility were generally intended to be utilised downstairs during the day and upstairs at night. As a consequence silent-pull quarter repeating timepieces are rarer, as the original owner would have to be very wealthy indeed to afford a timepiece reserved exclusively for use in the bed chamber. This clock is also equipped with silent pallets, designed to reduce the audible tick compared to a clock with conventional pallets, making it an ideal choice for use in a bedroom environment.

Height 13 inches (33 cm)