Beautiful Antique Westminster Kienzle Mantel Clock. Germany, Circa 1900

Beautiful antique Westminster quarter-repeating Kienzle mantel clock, made in Germany circa 1900 and in excellent condition. This striking clock is a unique piece for its beauty and its ancient age. It works really fine the quarter-repeater displays a wonderful neat sound which provides the clock with a very special touch. The clock has solid mahogany wooden box with a great classic-inspired design. It has a molded base on four small legs and a semicircular crowning piece. On one side we can see a silence lever which lifts the hammers, preventing the mechanism from chiming the hours and the quarters. The front door has two hand-carved pillars flanking the glass pane which lets us see the dial. Under this pane there is a hand-carved vegetal-inspired band with a delicate motif. The dial combines ormolu details and white metal parts; it has black Arab numerals and black Louis XV hands. The brass movement has the Kienzle logo and the serial number 34786 engraved in the metal body. For its gorgeous sound, noble presence and ancient age, this beautiful antique Westminster quarter-repeating mantel clock will stand out in the most stylish dining room. Dimensions: Width: 12.52 in / 31.8 cm. Height: 18.11 in / 46 cm. Depth: 8.27 in / 21 cm. History of Kienzle KIENZLE Uhren GmbH is one of Germany's oldest watchmakers. Jakob Kienzle was a young clockmaker apprentice who (after some years of apprenticeship and training) started to work for Johannes Schlenker, a renowned clockmaker of Schwenningen (Germany). In1883 Jakob Kienzle married into the Schlenker family and took over the company together with his brother-in-law, Karl-Johannes Schlenker. The name of the company was changed to Schlenker-Kienzle. In 1897 Jakob Kienzle became the sole owner, with the name of the company later being changed to Kienzle; in 1899, 162,000 watches and clocks were manufactured annually. Watch production was continuously extended and modernized, and in the following years branches in Milan, Paris and London were established. Thanks to their innovations and quality, Kienzle products become highly appreciated during the 20th century. In the 1960s and 70s, the firm IKienzle became a market leader in Germany: in the 1990s, they developed the most water-resistant watch in the world. In 1996 the firm went bankrupt and was taken over by a Hong Kong business group. Nevertheless in 2002 the company returned to Germany under the Kienzle AG name. Currently the company employs over 400 workers in its new factory and has got back its old success.