Striking longcase clock

Striking longcase clock by Holmes, London c.1802. Mahogany case with break-arch hood and single brass finial. 12-inch enamel dial with brass spandrels and subsidiary dial for strike-silent. Signed 'Holmes 156 Strand London'. Blued steel hands. Movement of 8-day duration with anchor escapement and Ludlam-type wood-rod pendulum with offset crutch and double roller suspension, typical of Holmes. The original written receipt for this clock, signed by William Holmes, dated June 18th 1802 and made out to George Hyde Wollaston for £17.9.6d, still survives. Clockmakers' Museum No. 1531

John Holmes (1727-1797) was a maker of high quality clocks, based at 156, Strand. The survival of this clock's original dated bill of sale shows it was not sold until after his death, when the business was under the direction of his widow, Sarah Holmes, to whom his clock and watchmaking business was left. Under the terms of John Holmes’s will, their son, William, was required to assist his mother, hence the signature on the receipt. Sarah Holmes died in 1813, after which the business at 156, Strand continued until around 1816 under the direction of William Holmes, who died in 1817.