Tall case clock

Date1790-1800

Maker Thomas Jones

MediumBlack walnut, tulip poplar, light and dark wood inlay, glass; painted sheet iron; brass, steel and iron movement. One finial sampled--black walnut found.

DimensionsOH: 101"; OW: 19 1/2"; OD: 17"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2002-69,A

DescriptionAppearance: Tall case clock in three separate parts (hood, trunk, and base) decorated with light and dark stringing and "barber pole" quarter round moldings. HOOD: Arched hood with 5 turned wooden finials, 3 across front, 2 at rear corners; heavy cornice moldings; glass fronted door with light and dark stringing around frame; arched windows in sides of bonnet surrounded by light and dark stringing. TRUNK: arched solid panel door with molded edge and round lunette in center surrounded by light and dark stringing; quarter round "barber pole" molding at front corners of trunk; wide cavetto waist molding. BASE: below waist molding, base arches/tapers inward with a horizontal light wood stringing around front and sides about 3/4 way from waist molding to mid-base molding; below mid-base molding, base flares outward in a rounded, bombe form with narrow base molding below. Evidence of castors and possibly missing feet.

Dial:
Two piece white painted arched metal dial measuring 18 ½”H x 13 1/8”W. The bottom square piece of the dial is 0.070” thick. The arch is 0.050” thick. Roman numeral hour painted chapter ring with Arabic minutes in fifteen minute intervals at outer ring border. Intermediate minutes are marked as dots below the Arabic numerals. Serpentine minute hand and scalloped hour hand. Painted seconds dial below XII with Arabic seconds in fifteen second intervals and intermediate seconds marked as dots passing through Arabic numerals. Seconds hand has no tail. Arched calendar aperture with gold painted border below dial center. Winding holes have painted gold border. Dial signed “Thomas Jones” in cursive between IX and III. “Strasburg” in block letters below calendar aperture. Top corner spandrels are painted flowers. Bottom spandrels are painted strawberries and leaves. Moon phase dial in arch with two globe hemispheres protruding. Dial contains two moons separated by a sailing warship and a castle. Lunar calendar is indicated in Arabic above moon dial labeled 1, 7, 15, 23, 29 ½. Intermediate days are marked with dots below Arabic numbers.

Movement description:
Eight-day brass time, strike, and calendar weight-driven movement measuring 6 3/16” H x 4 15/16” W. Plate thickness is typically 0.105” and clearance between front and back plates is 2.3”. Clock movement is set into seat board. Clock has an anchor-recoil escapement regulated by a seconds beat pendulum. A rack-and-snail strike sounds the hours on a 5.1” diameter cast bell.

Four brass pillars are riveted into the back plate and pinned at the front plate. The movement is fastened to the seat board by steel hooks that hook over the front of the bottom movement pillars and are fastened under the seat board by nuts. The brass time and strike barrels are grooved for the weight cords. The time mainwheel is 0.165” thick. The strike mainwheel is 0.161” thick. All time and strike train wheels have four-arm crossings. The conventional motion work is uncrossed. The round steel crutch-rod has a closed-end fork. The pendulum bridge base is a butterfly shape. It is fastened to the back plate with two screws and two locator pins. The bell stand is straight and is screwed to the inside of the back plate.

There are standard cast-brass pulleys with riveted steel stirrups. The overall length of the pendulum is 43 5/16”. The pendulum rod is 0.12” diameter steel. The bob is cast iron with a brass face. It is 4.5” diameter and 0.8” thick at its center. The adjustment nut is square. Only one of two weights is with the clock. It is a 6” long cast lead tapered cylinder of 2 ½” diameter at the top and 3” diameter at the bottom. It weighs 13 pounds.
Label TextMany of the settlers in the Valley of Virginia continued the craft traditions of their homelands, producing the same furniture forms and styles as they had previously. This clock demonstrates a continental tradition. The bombé base, arched hood, and round glass window in the case door are characteristic of a Dutch baroque aesthetic.
InscribedClock face inscribed "Thomas Jones/ STRASBURG"
Paper taped and glued inside trunk door inscribed:
1) (handwritten) "B.F. Brainard Lincoln Illinois on backboard. Owners prob. in 1911 when cable replaced."
2) (typed) "Tall Case Clock, brought by Nathaniel Pegram from a member of Henry Clay's family 1860-61. Regrooved by Samuel ------ November 15, 1862. Steel cable replaced by C. Olson Lincoln, Ill June 8, 1911. Cleaned and reconditioned by P. Virag, Evanston Winter 1954-55. Wood sample identified by David Hanks, the Art Institute of Chicago, Sept. 1967."
3) (typed form with handwritten information) "-----Institute of Chicigo. No.: Everett McNear/ Object: Tall clock/ Location: Private Collection/ Sample from: Bottom of finial/ Wood species: Black Walnut (American)/ For Am. Exhib?"
MarkingsSeat board marked on top and underside with stencil: "REPAIRED/ BY/ E. FLAIG/ JEWELER/ DANVILLE/ KY". Bell marked with portion of same stencil "REPAIRED/ BY/ E. FLAIG". Edward Flaig (b.1847) was a jeweler in Danville, Kentucky begining around 1865 through 1930. Per the 1910 US Census, Flaig immigrated from Germany as a child in 1853. His son Raymond worked with him in the shop.
ProvenanceNotes inside the clock door indicate that Nathaniel Pegram purchased the clock in 1860-61 from "a member of Henry Clay's family".
Philip Bradley acquired the clock at a Christie's auction, October 21, 1995.

Exhibition(s)