Baroque grandfather clock by Giovanni Batta Mazzi Firenze (1635–1705, Florence) with a spindle escapement and alarm, circa 1700
Key facts
- Country of manufacture
- Italy
- Production time
- around 1700
- Delivery
- €10.00
Description
Baroque grandfather clock by Giovanni Batta Mazzi Firenze (1635–1705, Florence) with spindle escapement and alarm, circa 1700 Baroque case made of plum wood? and oak (base), with fine fretwork in the side openings and in the spandrels of the front door, glazed on all sides; the rear pane has been replaced, whilst the front pane may still be original, in good condition for its age, apart from a few old wormholes in the crown and some missing sections in the dial surround and in the fretwork on the left-hand side; the upper handle was replaced at a later date. Very fine movement with spindle escapement and hour strike to an upper bell (rake strike) as well as an alarm mechanism, running time approximately 1 day; the gearing is still filed rather than milled; the stop mechanisms (winding limits) are still present; fixed spring barrels; locks are fitted to the drive wheels (similar to South German and Viennese grandfather clocks); the pendulum was later converted to a spring suspension; some teeth on the escapement of the movement were replaced at some point; the movement is in working order. The movement has been cleaned, some bearings replaced, and the pivots (polished to a reasonable degree); the movement is in working order, but due to its very advanced age (approx. 320 years), continuous operation is not recommended. Delicate, blued, Baroque steel hands. Exquisite hand-engraved arched dial with a superimposed silver-plated numeral ring featuring Roman hour and Arabic minute numerals, with a small setting wheel for the alarm; inscribed in the arch with ‘Gio. Batta Mazzi Firenze; according to the accompanying note, Giovanni Battista Mazzi, born in 1635 in Florence and died in 1705 in the same city, was a pupil of Francesco Parisi (born c. 1600); he also crafted a clock for the Villa Reale de Castello belonging to the Medici; other clocks are housed in the Palazzo Pitti and various other museums (see images for the rest). Dimensions: Height: 44.5 cm Width: 26 cm Depth: 16 cm A matching pendulum and a key are included in the offer.