Mantle Clock Dating

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 2:29 am     Post subject: Mantle Clock Dating

Hi Folks
I am new to the forums and hope i am not being too impertinent to ask for help on identifying my clock.

A number of years a go I was given a mantle clock that looks beautiful and I have always been eager to find out how old it might be. To me it is a bit unusual in that it does not have the sloping sides of many other mantle clocks that I ahve seen. Instead the main face of the clock rests on a very low horizontal stand of wood. If you wanted you could stand small figurines either side of the face of the clock on this base.

The face has the word "Unicorn" located just under the 12 in small bronzed letters and "Made in Germany" at the bottom on either side of the 6. I have searched on the inernet and can't seem to find much about this brand of clock.

The movement unit has the FHS logo on it and the number 200.8 stamped underneath. The chime is a curled length of metal.

If anyone could point me in the right direction on trying to find out when the clock or the movment may have been manufactured it would be very much appreciated.

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 8:19 am     Post subject: Clock dating

You may not find much information re the name on the dial of your clock.

The name on the face of the clock (Unicorn) means less than the "FHS" stamped on the movement. FHS stands for Franz Hermle and Sons, a well regarded German clock manufacturer. In addition to complete clocks, Hermle sells clock movements world-wide for installation in cases made by other firms or individuals. Unicorn could be a brand name for one of many firms that markets clocks containing Hermle movements. It could also be the in-house brand name of a retailer. Sometimes these brand names appear on the market for a brief period and then just as quickly vanish again.

From your brief description it seems that you have an 8 day clock with hour/half hour strike on coil gong. The case style sounds like many clocks made beginning in the mid to late 1950's. A photo or photos can help with identification.