Antique Carriage Clocks have always been popular with collectors because of their size and modest prices. They were made mainly by the French throughout the 1800s and became popular in the 1900s throughout England. Many of these clocks also came with a leather or wooden carry case that protected it as it was carried around with its owner.
The late 1800s saw antique carriage clocks produced in vast numbers by the French, the clock case and movement being made in two separate workshops and married together by a clockmaker who would attach his name somewhere on the clock, normally on the dial but sometimes on the movement. Some famous makers you may come across are Breguet, Garnier, Drocourt, Jacot and Margraine and some important English makers such as Vulliamy, Dent, McCabe and Frodsham.
Carriage Clock Antique Carriage Clocks may be plain, engraved, have decorated panels and the movement may include various complications like repeating functions, alarms and calendars. Their cases were all constructed with a brass frame and this can help with dating a clock. If the frame is a solid, one-piece cast frame then you can be fairly sure that it is pre-1850, after that brass was still used but the frames were constructed out of several pieces.
Although the French were the main producers of Antique Carriage Clocks, the English did make a smaller number and the best ones to collect are made by London makers. Most use the fusee movement but there were also some very fine examples made of a Chronometer Carriage Clock, using the chronometer escapement.
You may find a serial number on many clocks, mainly on the movement or on the dial. These can be misleading as to the original maker as often the seller would place his mark on the dial. Today there are many sources of serial numbers that can often be married to specific makers which will assist in dating the clock.