Appearance:      Lantern clock on wooden wall bracket.

Period:               Early to late.

Escapement:     Single and double foliot, plus later balance wheel.

Power Source:   Lead or brass weight.

Construction:    Lantern with square or rectangular pillars, normally brass.

 

Wadokei gearing calculations often required the clock to be wound several times throughout the day. Wall mounted hashira-dokei provided additional height for the weights to operate. Hashira-dokei were placed on a bracket which would in turn hang on the wall, or the toko-bashira (square post) next to the tokonoma (alcove) of a Japanese room.

Hashira-dokei are again lantern clocks and were made from approximately 1612 all the way to 1873. Some of these clocks, which were made earlier than this (around 1580-1612) had early European 24 hour standard time dials. This was common in Spain and Italy and these clocks, although made by Japanese clockmakers, would have been used by the Jesuit priests who tried in vain to make the Japanese accept the standard time system. Some were exported back to Europe but would be very rare and almost impossible to find today.

Example: Hashira-dokei in author’s collection.  Double foliot escapement.  Fixed hand and rotating dial.  Brass top and bottom plates, plus brass pillars, side plates and dial.  Double aperture to bottom of front plate; unusually indicating time of high tide each day; an important event in Japanese culture as important events and contract signings would never be done on an ebbing tide. Replacement bell and hood by author.  Bracket height 310mm.