A SMALL AMSTERDAM LONGCASE CLOCK Daniel van Barkel Ca. 1735
M&R4a
A SMALL AMSTERDAM LONGCASE CLOCK
Signed: Daniel van Barkel
Circa 1735
Holland
Movement
The year-going Amsterdam longcase clock with weight-driven movement has a going train only. It has anchor escapement with a seconds pendulum. The brass-clad lead weight weighs 21 kilos.
Dial
The arched brass dial has a silvered chapter ring with Roman hour, half-hour, quarter-hour, Arabic five-minute and minute divisions. Under the XII is a date aperture. The moon phase and moon age are indicated in the arch. In addition, there is some fine engraving around the moon-phase aperture, notably along the bottom, depicting the expulsion from paradise. The maker has signed the clock at the bottom of the chapter ring: Daniel van Barkel. The back of the chapter ring, moon dial and date ring bear the initials A.S., which stand for the well-known engraver Abraham Starre from Hoorn (north of Amsterdam). The time is indicated by a fine pair of period pierced blued-steel hands. The corners are embellished by symmetrically shaped cast-brass spandrels.
Case
The well-proportioned, burl-walnut and walnut veneered oak case of this Amsterdam longcase clock is of typical form. The base has buttresses on the corners and rests on ball feet. At the bottom of the trunk door is a lenticle with a cast-brass surround depicting a vase of plenty and the veil of life held by an eagle. Along the sides of the hood are plain columns with brass Corinthian capitals and bases. The top of the hood has pierced silk-backed wooden sound frets all around and is surmounted by three finials: an Atlas-figure on a base flanked by two trumpet-blowing angels. There are sculpted ornaments at the top of the hood and the trunk door.
Duration one year
Height 257 cm
Width 53 cm
Depth 27 cm
Literature
– E. Morpurgo, Nederlandse Klokken- en Horlogemakers vanaf 1300, p. 6.
– H.M. Vehmeyer, Antieke Uurwerken, Een Familieverzameling, p. 506.
– J. Zeeman, De Nederlandse Staande Klok, pp. 284-289.
The maker
Daniel van Barkel was born in Norden/Groningen (in the north of the Netherlands), probably in 1708. He was active as a clockmaker in Groningen from 1728. He is last mentioned in 1761. His sister Ida married the clockmaker Dirk Jansz. Spoor, who was established in Westerbork (in Drente, also in the north).
