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Grand in scale and unapologetically Victorian in temperament, this English bracket clock seamlessly unites architectural flair with mechanical mastery. Encased in golden oak and powered by a robust three-train, quarter-striking movement, it epitomizes the late 19th century’s reverence for ornament, precision, and gravitas.
This well-proportioned, cross-banded mahogany tall clock, made about 1820 by Frederick Wingate of Augusta, Maine, No.180, survives with its original finish intact. For collectors who prize untouched surfaces, it stands as an exceptional example, and perhaps one of the finest Wingate tall clocks known.
In the late 18th century, when Amsterdam was among Europe’s great mercantile capitals, the city’s finest clockmakers crafted timepieces that were as theatrical as they were precise. Among them was Jan Henkels, whose elaborate automaton clocks blended mechanics, art, and maritime symbolism into objects of both spectacle and utility. Made circa 1770, this imposing burl walnut longcase, with its dial alive with automated ships, celestial displays, and allegorical figures, captures the ingenuity and ambition of Dutch horology at its height, transforming the simple measurement of time into a small stage of movement, myth, and seafaring imagination.
The phrase “Warranted by J. Wilder / Hingham” serves as a signature of accountability, reflecting a clockmaker's confidence that time would be the ultimate arbiter of his skill.
The clock is a mahogany-front wall timepiece made by Joshua Wilder, Hingham, Massachusetts, c. 1820. It is elegant and simple. The mahogany case ascends in a vertical rhythm from its presentation bracket to the finial. Brass side-arms frame the body. A hinged, glass bezel protects the dial. Roman numerals sit between a closed minute ring and a softly gleaming gilt chapter ring. Below, a veneered lower door opens to reveal the pendulum's steady arc, a reminder that time here is measured, not rushed.
This tall, elegant clock, made by Jacob Sargeant in Hartford, Connecticut, around 1795, exemplifies the refined Hartford–Windsor case tradition. This clockmaking style developed along the Connecticut River valley in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, blending functional form with intricate decoration. The case, crafted from richly colored cherry wood with a deep chocolate-brown finish, is taller and more slender than most similar clocks, imparting a subtle elegance. The base features ogee-bracket feet, curved brackets, and double-stepped moldings underneath. The shaped waist door is framed by fluted quarter columns, capped in brass. These details closely match casework from Hartford and Windsor workshops of that period.
Aaron Willard of Boston, Massachusetts, crafted this distinguished mahogany tall clock, notable for its refined craftsmanship, automated rocking-ship dial, and original, rare setup label printed from plates engraved by the American Patriot Paul Revere. This clock stands as a rare survivor from a time when New England artisans, including clockmakers, cabinetmakers, and engravers, shaped a distinctly American aesthetic.
A French Marvel in Motion
Emerging from the inventive spirit of the late 19th century is a French industrial windmill-form compendium, a curious and meticulously crafted object, made for the Spanish market. Resting on a circular Belgian slate base, the structure, finished in gilded faux ashlar, resembles a miniature civic monument, its details rendered with notable seriousness for such a whimsical form.
The E. Howard Model No. 59-8 Black Dial: Time, Rarity, and Refinement
Among E. Howard & Co.'s renowned regulators, the Model No. 59, are distinguished by their elegance and rarity. Available in four sizes, this example is the second-smallest, measuring 3 feet 10 inches in length and featuring an 8-inch dial diameter. Customers could select their case from wood options such as oak, ash, cherry, or walnut—all finished to Howard's meticulous standards.
Signed on the dial by Rutland's leading clockmaker, Nicholas Goddard, this tall clock stands as a Vermont masterpiece and one of the finest examples of Federal-era craftsmanship from the bucolic state.
This exceptional D.J. Gale Astronomical Calendar gallery clock ranks among the most intricate and visually captivating American wall clocks of its era. It was crafted in partnership with Welch, Spring & Company, and Daniel Jackson Gale in Forestville, Connecticut.