John Ellicott Mahogany Long Case Clock

• Mahogany - Mahogany is a dense, close grained red-coloured timber from the West Indies and Central America. It was first imported into Europe in the the early 18th century and its use continued through the 19th century. It was popular for furniture making because of its strength, the wide boards available, the distinctive grain on some boards, termed flame mahogany and the rich warm colour of the timber when it was polished.. The "flame" was produced where a limb grew out from the trunk of the tree, and this timber was usually sliced into veneers for feature panels on doors, backs and cornices.
  
  Some terms used to describe mahogany relate to the country from which it originally came, such as "Cuban" mahogany, "Honduras" mahogany etc. However unless the wood has been tested the names assigned are more a selling feature, rather than a true indication of the timber's origin.
• Spandrel - An architectural term that in horology refers to the triangular ornamental decoration in the corners of of the dial plate. The spandrels are usually of cast brass and may be additonally chased and engraved. On painted dial clocks the spandrels are also usually painted.
• Hood - In longcase clocks, the hood is the wooden case that surrounds the works and dial, and includes the glass front, which is usually hinged, so the door can be opened to wind the clock or adjust the time. In 18th and 19th century longcase clocks the hood usually slides forward for removal, allowing access to the works.
• Calendar Aperture -
  A calendar aperture on a clock refers to a small window on the clock face that displays the day, month or year or all of these. The aperture is usually located on the clock's dial with the date data recorded on a wheel which is designed to rotate to show the correct date information.
  
  
  Some clocks have a manual adjustment for the date, while others are designed to automatically adjust for the date, including for leap years. The calendar aperture is a useful feature found on clocks from the 16th century, and on many types of clocks, including wall clocks, alarm clocks and wristwatches.
• Finial - An architectural decoration, found on the upper parts of of an object. On furniture they are usually found on pediments, canopies and shelf supports. On smaller ceramic or silver items, such as spoons, they may decorate the top of the item itself, or the lid or cover where they provide a useful handle for removal.
  
  Finials have a variety of shapes and forms. They may be urn-shaped, baluster shaped round or spiral, but usually taper into an upper point. Many real life shapes may also be used as finials, such as pineapples, berries, pinecones, buds, lotus and acorns. Sometimes animals such as a lion are depicted, or fish and dolphins.
• Date Aperture - A date aperture is a cut out section in the face of a watch or clock, displaying the day of the month.
• Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• Ellicott, John (Britain) - clocks, maker or retailer 7