Mantel clock 1786 - 1811

Editor: So, we're looking at this beautiful mantel clock, made sometime between 1786 and 1811 by the Firm of John and Myles Brockbanks. It's wood and metal, with a definite neoclassical vibe. What strikes me is the… formality of it, the way it commands attention without being overly ornate. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Oh, time's sweet whisper elegantly framed, wouldn't you agree? This clock, she's not just a teller of hours, is she? She's a portal to an era obsessed with order and reason. Neoclassicism was all about bringing back the 'glory days' of ancient Greece and Rome, which you can see in the symmetry, the clean lines, and those delightful little flourishes of gilded metal, a symphony of decorative-art isn't it? Tell me, what sort of stories do you imagine it might have silently observed on some long-ago mantelpiece? Editor: That’s a lovely image. It makes me wonder who owned this, and what their lives were like. And it's fascinating how it blends that classical inspiration with, well, the very practical function of telling time. Was this sort of blending common, or was it a particularly unique creation? Curator: Blending, always, my dear. Think of art not as a solid block, but as ever-shifting sands in an hourglass of inspiration. In this period, you’d often see nods to the classics mingled with contemporary craftsmanship. Brockbanks was a known and prolific creator of high quality clocks and watches, who successfully met demand for both functional pieces and objet d'art during the neoclassical movement. This clock reminds us that the urge to beautify the mundane is eternal, a notion which truly transcends time, don't you think? Editor: I hadn’t thought of it that way before. Seeing it as part of that “ever-shifting sands” picture, you notice how intertwined function and aesthetics are. Curator: Exactly! Perhaps this little jaunt through time has made time stand a little still for you. For me it is like getting a new pair of spectacles; I suddenly perceive familiar objects in much sharper focus.