Chariot clock
Figural mantel clock in chariot form, popular from 16th century.
A chariot clock is a type of mantel or table figural clock in the form of a chariot, with the dial set into the wheel or elsewhere. Its origins date to the second half of the 16th century in southern Germany, and it has been produced in various periods and styles, including Renaissance, Louis XV, Louis XVI, Empire, Napoleon III, and Art Deco.
- Origin
- Southern Germany, second half of the 16th century
- Periods
- Renaissance, Louis XV, Louis XVI, Empire, Napoleon III, Art Deco
- Key center
- Augsburg, Nuremberg, Munich
- Notable maker
- Not applicable to German production; French bronze caster Pierre-Philippe Thomire is associated with later French Empire styles, not original German chariot clocks.
- Material
- Bronze, stone, spelter, biscuit porcelain, porcelain, faience
Lore & Background
The earliest chariot clocks were self-moving four-wheeled tabletop clocks made in South Germany between 1550 and 1650, often including automata figurines and sometimes a musical movement. The dial was placed in the seat or elsewhere, not in the wheel. Most were fabricated in Augsburg, though some lack inscriptions and are ascribed only to South German workshops. These rare, costly pieces were affordable only by nobility and royal courts. The later boom period often cited for chariot clocks (late 1790s to mid-1820s) refers primarily to French Empire and Napoleon III styles, not the original German production.
Reader's Guide
Chariot clocks experienced an unprecedented boom from the late 1790s to the mid-1820s, largely inspired by Napoleon Bonaparte's conquests. French artisans, freed from ancien régime restrictions, developed large factories and produced a wide diversity of models. The clocks featured an ancient chariot on a base, carrying classical mythology figures, with the dial usually set into the wheel. Unlike German predecessors, the chariot did not move and automata were rare. These allegorical clocks served political ideology, exalting heroism, bravery, and moral values. After the mid-1820s, production continued in France and elsewhere, including the United States, with models by New Haven and Waterbury clock companies. In the 1930s, the French company Berlot-Mussier (trade name ODYV) offered an Art Deco version in faience.
Did You Know?
- The earliest chariot clocks were self-moving and included automata figurines.
- Most German examples placed the dial in the seat, not the wheel.
- The boom period for chariot clocks in the German context dates from the 16th to 17th centuries, not the late 1790s to mid-1820s.
- The New Haven clock company produced a chariot clock model in the 1900s.
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