Clocks, Domestic, General Bracket clock, French, c 1680

Clocks, Domestic, General Bracket clock, French, c 1680. Detail of mechanism. An early example of a pendulum clock made by Isaac Thuret (d 1700), clockmaker to King Louis XIV (1638-1715) of France. The first commercial pendulum clocks were made in the Netherlands in 1657, under a licence or 'privilege' according to the designs of Christiaan Huygens (1629-1693). Huygens moved to Paris in 1665, where Thuret made pendulum clocks under his direction. This clock has many Dutch-type features, and the operation of the strike hammer is similar to that of Dutch clocks. The hour and minute dial is mounted on velvet and Thuret's name is engraved on a small cartouche below the dial. ©SSPL/Science Museum