Maker

William Moon of London

Date

circa 1770

Wood

Mahogany

Height

7' 11" (238cm)

Dial Style

Brass arched, with moonphase

Movement

Eight-day

A rare and perfectly-proportioned London longcase of the third quarter of the 18th Century. William Moon was working from the 1760's to 1780.

The mahogany case has all the features associated with top-quality London examples of the period. Look for the shaped panel applied to the base and the base's double plinth, the "pagoda" top to the hood, the brass-stopped fluted columns to the trunk sides as well as to the hood, the brass fish-scale sound frets to the sides of the hood.

It is fitted with an eight-day movement. Most unusually for a London longcase, it includes a rotating moonphase disc to the arch, thought to have been a pun on the maker's name.

Superb mahogany longcases such as this one were the best that money could buy in London at the time, and retain their popularity owing to their sheer elegance and style.