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The Quarter Strike of the Second Royal Exchange, London, Recovered

The Quarter Strike of the Second Royal Exchange, London, Recovered Research Note The Quarter Strike of the Second Royal Exchang~London,Recovered GEORGE w. WILLIAMS When the Committee of the Royal Exchange had rebuilt the structures of the Exchange after the Great Fire of 1666, they completed their work by installing in the tower a striking clock, designed to tell the time of day, to signal the hours of trad- ing, and to play six tunes at specified times of the day and of the week. The contract was given to Edward Stanton, who finished his work by Lady-Day 1671. The specifica- tions for the clock included these requirements: that it shall be 'a substantial worke- manlike clock ... for the going thirty howers. That it shall strike the quarters upon fower bells; that it shall strike the hower; that it shall repeate at the halfe hour'. 1 What is remarkable in these specifications is the requiremen t to strike the quarter on four bells.2 The first recorded instance of a quarter strike in England is that of the clock at St Paul's Cathedral, which from before 1298 had been striking the quarters on two bells by means of mechanical figures, 'jacks', contrived to strike the bells with hammers, the pair http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png The London Journal: A Review of Metropolitan Society Past and Present Taylor & Francis

The Quarter Strike of the Second Royal Exchange, London, Recovered

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Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 1998 Maney Publishing
ISSN
1749-6322
eISSN
0305-8034
DOI
10.1179/ldn.1998.23.2.68
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Research Note The Quarter Strike of the Second Royal Exchang~London,Recovered GEORGE w. WILLIAMS When the Committee of the Royal Exchange had rebuilt the structures of the Exchange after the Great Fire of 1666, they completed their work by installing in the tower a striking clock, designed to tell the time of day, to signal the hours of trad- ing, and to play six tunes at specified times of the day and of the week. The contract was given to Edward Stanton, who finished his work by Lady-Day 1671. The specifica- tions for the clock included these requirements: that it shall be 'a substantial worke- manlike clock ... for the going thirty howers. That it shall strike the quarters upon fower bells; that it shall strike the hower; that it shall repeate at the halfe hour'. 1 What is remarkable in these specifications is the requiremen t to strike the quarter on four bells.2 The first recorded instance of a quarter strike in England is that of the clock at St Paul's Cathedral, which from before 1298 had been striking the quarters on two bells by means of mechanical figures, 'jacks', contrived to strike the bells with hammers, the pair

Journal

The London Journal: A Review of Metropolitan Society Past and Present – Taylor & Francis

Published: Nov 1, 1998

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