An elegant and early Dutch burr alder 8-day longcase clock, known as "Amsterdams staand horloge",
signed on the dial Pieter Klok, Amsterdam, having a seconds dial and apertures for date and moonphase in the arch, "Dutch striking" on 2 bells, alarm, black-stained burr alder veneered oak case, ebony mouldings,
254 cm high + 27 cm for finial and support, in total 281 cm, ca. 1730.
The type of veneer was popular during the first quarter of the 18th
century in England, Germany and The Netherlands. It has recently been determined that this type of veneer was often confused with burr elm, maple, amboina or mulberry. In most cases, after thorough investigation, it appeared to be alder (Aldus glutinosa or Aldus incana), a common domestic type of almost white veneer, black-stained with e.g. charcoal, then coloured, giving the veneer an exotic look. This was perhaps to imitate tortoise shell, popular in France at the time.
This country then led the European fashion.
Pieter Klok or Klock or Clock, Amsterdam was born in Amsterdam in 1665 and died 1754 (Morpurgo). He was a clockmaker, but also a dealer in paintings. He had his workshop at the Singel, later at the Kalverstraat. In 1716, at the request of the city council, he composed the 3rd Register of Good Men, a list of the principal and best qualified clockmakers in Amsterdam. He is listed in the Register of 1704, composed by the well-known clockmaker Steven Huygens.