French Black Marble Clock Garniture with Cupid Motifs

• Pendulum - The pendulum was discovered around 1602 by Galileo Galilei, and was adopted for time keeping by the Dutch mathematician and natural philosopher, Christiaan Huygens, who excelled in astronomy, physics, and horology.
  
  The pendulum comprises a metal rod usually of brass or steel with a metal disk, known as a bob, at the end. The movement of the pendulum is driven by weights or a spring, and as a pendulum swings in a regular arc, it was found accuracy could be controlled to within a few seconds a week.
  
  Timekeeping can be adjusted by changing the height of the bob on the rod, making the pendulum either swing slower or faster.
  
  The disadvantage of the pendulum was that changes in temperature also changed the length of the pendulum, interfering with the accuracy of the clock, and so in the 18th century two types of mercurial pendulums were invented which countered the movement in the steel rod.
  
  The pendulum was the world's most accurate timekeeping technology until the invention of the quartz clock, regulated by a quartz crystal, in 1927.
• Brocot Escapement - The Brocot escapement was invented by the French clockmaker Achille Brocot in 1828. It is a type of escapement, which is a mechanism in a timepiece that controls the movement of the gears and regulates the timekeeping accuracy.
  
  The Brocot escapement is a variation of the detent escapement and it is used in pendulum and spring-driven clocks. It uses a pair of pallets that engage and lock the escape wheel, allowing the clock's power to be transferred to the balance wheel. The escapement also allows the clock's gears to advance in small, precise increments, which helps to improve the clock's timekeeping accuracy. The Brocot escapement was widely used in 19th century for both domestic and public clocks, also it was widely used in marine chronometers.
  
  The Brocot escapement is known for its high accuracy and stability
• Bronze - An alloy of copper and tin, traditionally in the proportions of about 9 parts of copper to 1 part of tin.
  
  The discovery of bronze in Western Asia in the 4th century enabled people to create metal objects which were superior to those previoulsy possible because of its strength and hardness, and it has been used throughout the world for weapons, coins, tools, statuary and other decorative items.
  
  It is very fluid in a molten state, and its hardness, strength when set, and non-corrosive properties makes it most suitable for casting sculpture.
• 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.
• 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:

• clocks, type - clock sets and garnitures 610