Neat, long door, flame mahogany case with breakarch top, side windows to hood, brass capped, brass insert, fluted hood columns, plain brass capped hood rear quarter columns, brass insert canted fluted corners to trunk and two step plinth to base, the lower shaped.

12" breakarch brass dial with rare, colourful, automata to arch - seesaw with male ( left ) and female ( right ) figures, driven from the pallet arbor. Sliding door activated on the warning, exposing a figure ( the Miller ).Windmill activated on the strike.Sliding door then closes.

Very rare and interesting feature. Cast brass spandrels around the raised, silvered chapter ring. The silvered dial centre with subsidiary seconds dial, square date box, typical late 18C "light touch" engraving of delicate scrolling with Thos. Parnell in script and CANTERBURY in block. Blued cut steel hands.

High quality, 5 pillar, 8 day, hourly ( rack ) striking movement with well executed drives to automata features.

Thos. ( Thomas ) Parnell of Canterbury is recorded - apprenticed 1773 to Richard Cramp, obtained his Freedom on 12th May 1784, known working "by the West Gate" Took apprentices - Charles Dowsett and Thomas Mummery in 1792 and 1799 respectively. It is stated that��"no watches or clocks by him have been traced, though one was lost in July 1784".Presumably a watch. Thomas Parnell was the son of Thomas and Mary Parnell. His father was a Gingerbread maker.