French Brocot Clock

         The Brocot escapement, invented by Achille Brocot (1817-1878) in Paris around 1860, is a pin pallet escapement that was designed for use with pendulum clocks. The pallets have semi-circular, rounded surfaces instead of straight surfaces, found on most other escapements. Select this link to see an animation of the Brocot escapement.

         Most clocks with Brocot escapements have the placed in front of the dial, where it can be seen in action. This clock was probably made in the 1880s, for export to the United States.

Fig. 1

         The dial comes apart in two layers.

Fig. 2

         Behind the dial is the strike mechanism.

Fig. 3

         I left the fourth wheel of the time train in its place for this photo, in order to show its position.

Fig. 4

         The rest of the gears are between the plates. The craftsmanship is superb, made by hand.

Fig. 5