1880s R. Sharpley & Sons Westminster & Whittington Chimes Long Case Clock

0:00 Intro 3:01 Whittington/Chime on 8 Bells 4:41 Westminster/Cambridge Chimes Presented today is my wife's exquisite English/Canadian chiming long case clock. She has been slowly purchasing this clock over the last ten years, since long before we met, and long before my interest in clocks first developed. That said, finally having this exquisite piece of horological history in our possession is going a long way toward shifting my interest toward older, more finely made clocks. Manufactured some time in the 1880s, this clock's origins are a bit of a mystery. The movement has all the trademarks of English design of the era, but is unsigned. Neither is the case, although the dial is marked R. Sharpley & Sons, who were notable Canadian jewelers. Indeed, this clock was the timekeeper for the R. Sharpley & Sons shop in Montreal during the late 19th century. However, it is not clear whether the case was manufactured by them, or if both the case and movement were imported from abroad. At the heart of the clock beats a weight-powered, pendulum-driven movement, which runs for eight days per winding. It also has a quarter hour chime train, offering a choice of two melodies. The first, marked Cambridge chimes, is the familiar Westminster tune, played on four tuned coiled gongs. The second is marked chime on 8 bells, and is an early version of the Whittington chimes, played on a set of eight nested bells. At the top of the hour, the clock plays the full length of the chosen melody, then strikes the number of hours on a very large cathedral gong. This is, hands down, the most high-quality clock I have come across, and I am genuinely honored to be a part of its history. Many thanks to my brother-in-law for offering his filming skills for this video!