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What is the rarest clock?

1 Answer

What the rarest clock is today will owe to a particular model's presence on the market. The rarest and most sought-after clocks in the world include those created by Patek Philippe, Waltham Watch Company, Cartier, Hermle, E. Howard & Co. and Thomas Tompion.

If a given model designed by one of these manufacturers is scarce, this attribute will be critical to determining its value providing there is demand for it. While other factors are at play when it comes to value, scarcity is important in the world of collectibles.

Clocks designed in recent decades may be worth more than their older counterparts if fewer of the former are on the market. For example, an antique clock manufactured in a large quantity, even if it is an exceptionally decorative object adorned with gilt bronze flowers and tortoiseshell elements, may be worth far less than a one-of-a-kind vintage clock owing entirely to rarity and demand.

A table clock designed by prestigious English clockmaker Thomas Tompion for Queen Mary in 1693 was sold at auction for more than $2 million in 2019, while a clock named the Duc d'Orléans Breguet Sympathique, designed by the Swiss house of Breguet in the 1830s, fetched $6.8 million at auction in 2012. There are an estimated 12 Sympathiques in existence.

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1stDibs ExpertFebruary 16, 2024

Category

Vintage 1920s French Art Deco Table Clocks and Desk Clocks

Materials

Marble, Bronze

1930s Art Deco Mantel Clock with Silver Plated Bronze Figures

Late 18th Century English Oak "Grandmother" Clock

By Robert Wells 1

Located in Chapel Hill, NC

English clock, a "Grandmother" size, c.1770-80. With single weight driving time & strike. 30 hour birdcage movement. The bell is marked R. Wells. Robert Wells, father, worked in Wilt...

Category

Antique Late 18th Century English Georgian Grandfather Clocks and Longca...

Materials

Oak, Walnut

Late 18th Century English Oak "Grandmother" Clock

Huge Industrial Illuminated Double Sided Gents of Leicester Railway Clock. c1930

By Gents of Leicester

Located in London, GB

An incredible and large illuminated double faced wall clock made in England by Gents of Leicester. c.1930 Double sided wall mounted in fantastic condition in old dark blue paint. Ge...

Category

Vintage 1930s English Industrial Wall Clocks

Materials

Steel

Huge Industrial Illuminated Double Sided Gents of Leicester Railway Clock. c1930

English Bracket Clock with Silver Plated Dial, London, circa 1800

By Johnson

Located in Greven, DE

Bracket Clock London wood, brass around 1800 Dimensions: H x W x D: 46 x 27 x 17 cm Description: English bracket clock in an ebonised "bell-top" wooden case with a carrying handle...

Category

Antique Early 19th Century English Table Clocks and Desk Clocks

Materials

Brass

English Bracket Clock with Silver Plated Dial, London, circa 1800

Viennese Silver Historicism Splendour Clock With Musical Movement, Around 1880

By Viennese Manufactory

Located in Vienna, AT

Artfully decorated silver gilded table clock by a Viennese master: Flat, rectangular corpus containing the musical mechanism, standing on four elaborately decorated volute feet attac...

Category

Antique 1880s Austrian Other Sterling Silver

Materials

Amethyst, Malachite, Gold Plate, Silver, Enamel

Viennese Silver Historicism Splendour Clock With Musical Movement, Around 1880

Late 18th Century English Longcase Clock with Moonphases, Manchester, circa 1780

Located in Greven, DE

Late 18th Century English Grandfather Clock with Moonphases England (Manchester) Mahogany second half of 18th century Dimensio...

Category

Antique Late 18th Century English Grandfather Clocks and Longcase Clocks

Materials

Mahogany

Late 18th Century English Longcase Clock with Moonphases, Manchester, circa 1780

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