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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Clock type · Public & tower

Turret Clocks

Partially verified

Turret clock is an overlapping term for a tower or building-mounted public clock, not a distinct escapement or an exclusively nineteenth-century mechanism.

Construction and interpretation

Turret clock and tower clock are overlapping names for large building-mounted public clocks. Turret does not identify a distinct nineteenth-century invention or guarantee a gravity escapement. Historical examples use different frames, power systems and escapements. Keeping the two established reference URLs is useful for readers who encounter either name, but their definitions must agree rather than create a false mechanical distinction.

An installation description should trace energy from the weights or motor through the going train and out to the dial hands. Strike and chime work require separate description because a public clock need not have both. The Great Clock at Westminster is a documented example of specialised public-clock engineering; it is not a template from which to infer the equipment of every church or civic clock. Photographs of removed museum movements likewise do not show the complete original transmission or bell installation.

Turret Clocks: feature and evidence comparison
FeatureWhat it meansEvidence to seek
Turret / tower terminologyOverlapping public-clock categoriesUsage in the institution’s records
Pendulum escapementLocal timekeeping regulator where retainedActual escapement identification
Remote handsDriven through separate transmissionInstallation diagram or shaft view
Removed movementOnly part of the former installationOriginal dial and bell records

Gravity escapement is a specific construction, not a synonym for turret clock.

Evidence to record

  • Use maker plates and institutional histories for attribution.
  • Do not infer an escapement from an external dial.
  • Preserve records of electrical or mechanical alterations.

Movement & mechanism

  • Escapements vary; gravity escapements belong to specific installations, not all turret clocks
  • Frames and power arrangements differ; striking and chiming trains are present only where fitted
  • External dials may be driven remotely from the movement through shafting and gearing
  • Weight-driven trains with very long drops
  • Gravity or pinwheel escapements in later precision examples
  • Maintaining power and remontoire arrangements in high-grade work

Identification

  • Gravity escapement mechanism, if fitted, is a strong marker of a higher-grade nineteenth-century turret installation
  • Maker's plate on the frame, often naming a named turret-clock firm
  • Iron or brass frames of architectural scale
  • Long weight drops within the tower
  • Original hand-forged ironwork distinguishes early movements from Victorian replacements

Terminology

  • Gravity escapement — an escapement in which a small arm is lifted by the going train and then falls under gravity to impulse the pendulum, insulating it from external torque variation
  • Chiming train — a separate train playing a tune (e.g. Westminster Quarters) before the hour strike
  • Flatbed frame
  • Birdcage frame
  • Gravity escapement

Known variations

  • Gravity-escapement turret clocks
  • Pin-wheel escapement turret clocks
  • Electrically synchronised or wound turret clocks
  • Birdcage, flatbed and cast-iron frame types

Collecting notes

Notable named turret clocks (such as the Great Clock at the Elizabeth Tower, Westminster) are extensively documented individually; generic turret movements are collected mainly by industrial heritage and clock preservation groups.

Photographs

TurretClock GrossheubachCollection Nees
TurretClock GrossheubachCollection Nees — KaiBorgeest, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page
Cassiobury Park Turret Clock
Cassiobury Park Turret Clock — Rept0n1x at Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons file page
1868 PRINT ~ HOROLOGY ~ TURRET CLOCK BY COOKE & SONS YORK | eBay
1868 PRINT ~ HOROLOGY ~ TURRET CLOCK BY COOKE & SONS YORK | eBay — ebay.com, Rights unverified — web image search result, review pending. Web page (ebay.com)
THE TURRET CLOCK KEEPER'S HANDBOOK - Horology - The Index
THE TURRET CLOCK KEEPER'S HANDBOOK - Horology - The Index — yumpu.com, Rights unverified — web image search result, review pending. Web page (yumpu.com)
Bonhams : A fine mid 19th century striking turret clock movement ...
Bonhams : A fine mid 19th century striking turret clock movement ... — bonhams.com, Rights unverified — web image search result, review pending. Web page (bonhams.com)
Bonhams : A late 18th century turret clock movement with dial and bell ...
Bonhams : A late 18th century turret clock movement with dial and bell ... — Bonhams, Rights pending — source and visual checks completed; permission not yet requested. Web page (bonhams.com)
Good Large cast iron two train turret clock movement by Thos Cooke (b ...
Good Large cast iron two train turret clock movement by Thos Cooke (b ... — auctions.gardinerhoulgate.co.uk, Rights unverified — web image search result, review pending. Web page (auctions.gardinerhoulgate.co.uk)
Bonhams : A small 18th century striking turret clock movement
Bonhams : A small 18th century striking turret clock movement — bonhams.com, Rights unverified — web image search result, review pending. Web page (bonhams.com)
Mid-19th century striking turret clock movement by Benjamin Louis Vulliamy (London, no. 1711, dated 1845)
Mid-19th century striking turret clock movement by Benjamin Louis Vulliamy (London, no. 1711, dated 1845) — Bonhams, Rights pending — permission not yet requested. Web page (www.bonhams.com)
A late 18th-century turret clock movement with dial and bell, attributed to Ainsworth Thwaites
A late 18th-century turret clock movement with dial and bell, attributed to Ainsworth Thwaites — Bonhams, Rights pending — permission not yet requested. Web page (www.bonhams.com)
A SWISS BRASS AND STEEL SMALL TURRET CLOCK MOVEMENT
A SWISS BRASS AND STEEL SMALL TURRET CLOCK MOVEMENT — Invaluable auction archive, Auction archive photograph, rights review pending. Invaluable sold-lot record
A 19TH CENTURY STRIKING TURRET CLOCK ...
A 19TH CENTURY STRIKING TURRET CLOCK ... — Invaluable auction archive, Auction archive photograph, rights review pending. Invaluable sold-lot record

Photographs are illustrative examples of the type, not necessarily the exact object described. Verify details against the source file page.

Sources & references

  1. Britten, F. J., Old Clocks and Watches and Their Makers
  2. Museum catalogue descriptions of comparable examples
  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turret_clock
  4. https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/building/palace/big-ben/building-clock-tower/constructing-the-most-accurate-clock-in-the-world/

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.