Antique clock dials were made in a variety of types and styles, the country of origin can also greatly influence the type of dial and the materials employed. Antique clocks may have brass dials often with some parts silvered and others either painted or gilded. Older dials, particularly those with attached chapter rings, subsidiary dials or date dials will usually have their numbers, either Roman or Arabic, first engraved into the brass base, and then the engraving is filled with black wax (shellac).
Many later dials are painted. This is a process that first began in the early 1770’s. An iron plate was coated with a whitish base then the numbers and signature would be inked as appropriate for the dial. Painted dials, usually called white dials, often had decoratively painted scenes to the corners, and where included, to the arch at the top as well. Some dials had a moon phase dial where the moon disc would be decoratively painted with two moons and two scenes. Nineteenth century longcase, bracket, mantle and shelf clocks often had painted dials.
