Original Listing Description

3/4 SIZE BREWSTER & INGRAHAMS, BRISTOL, CT. STEEPLE OR SHARP GOTHIC SHELF CLOCK MADE ca.1846 ELISHA C. BREWSTER & CO. MADE THE MOVEMENTS AND BROTHERS ELIAS AND ANDREW INGRAHAM MADE THE CASES TO PRODUCE FINISHED CLOCKS BY BREWSTER & INGRAHAMSVERY NICE BRAZILIAN ROSEWOOD VENEER COVERED CASE WITH OLDER OR PERHAPS ORIGINAL FINISH; FINISH SHOWS SOME 'CHECKERING' DUE TO AGEUNUSUAL GOLD-LEAFED FINIALS AND BALL FEETCLOCK IS SIGNED 'BREWSTER & INGRAHAMS' INSIDE ON THE LABEL AND ON THE MOVEMENT FRONT PLATE (SEE PHOTOS)LABEL IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION FOR A CLOCK OF THIS AGEORIGINAL DIAL SHOWS SOME PAINT LOSS ON LOWER EDGE AND AROUND THE TIME SIDE WINDING OPENING; SOME YELLOWING ALSO PRESENT30-HR. MODIFIED CHARLES KIRK STYLE MOVEMENT IS RUNNING FINE (I JUST RE-OILED THE PIVOTS); THE PIVOT HOLES LOOK TIGHT AND THE STEEL SPRINGS LOOK NEWERVERY COLORFUL ORIGINAL 'PRESIDENT'S HOUSE' ENGRAVED SCENE ON THE LOWER GLASS; SHOWS SOME LOSSBOTH HANDS ARE ORIGINALTHIS IS SIMILAR TO THE EXAMPLE I JUST SOLD THIS EVENING EXCEPT FOR THE STYLE OF FINIALS AND FEET AND THE DECORATED GLASS. THIS IS THE LAST 3/4 STEEPLE THAT I HAVE FOR SALE. AS FAR AS I KNOW 3/4 SIZE STEEPLE CLOCKS WERE ONLY MADE BY BREWSTER & INGRAHAMS OF BRISTOL, CT SOMETIME IN THE TIME PERIOD OF APPROXIMATELY 1846 TO 1850. NO OTHER CLOCK MANUFACTURER MADE THIS STYLE OF STEEPLE CLOCK. ELIAS INGRAHAM MOST LIKELY DESIGNED THE STEEPLE OR SHARP GOTHIC CLOCK CASE WHILE ELISHA BREWSTER PROVIDED MOVEMENTS INITIALLY INVENTED BY CHARLES KIRK WHO WAS A JOINT JUNIOR PARTNER AND FOREMAN IN E. C. BREWSTER & CO. THESE CLOCKS ARE APPROXIMATELY 1 TO 1-1/2 INCHES LESS IN WIDTH THAN THE MORE COMMON FULL SIZED STEEPLE CLOCKS MADE BY A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT MANUFACTURERS. OFTEN THE HEIGHT IS REDUCED BY AN INCH OR SO ALSO. (THIS CLOCK MEASURES 19-3/4" H x 8-3/4" W x 3-1/4" D). THE SIZE REDUCTION IS MOST EVIDENT WHEN VIEWING THESE CLOCKS FROM THE FRONT AS ALL THE FRONT COMPONENTS ARE SMALLER IN WIDTH THAN THOSE ON THE FULL SIZE STEEPLES. ALL OF THE 3/4 STEEPLES I HAVE OBSERVED ARE BRAZILIAN ROSEWOOD VENEERED LIKE THIS EXAMPLE. 3 STYLES OF CASES HAVE BEEN DOCUMENTED BASED ON THE STYLE OF FINIALS USED. A NUMBER OF EXAMPLES SHOW THE NORMAL, TAPERED FINIALS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED ON MANY OF THE FULL SIZED STEEPLE CLOCKS. THESE ARE NORMALLY NARROWER, AND, THUS 'SLEEKER' THAN THE FULL SIZED EXAMPLES. THE SECOND STYLE, LIKE THIS EXAMPLE, HAS DELICATELY TURNED FINIALS THAT HAVE BEEN COATED WITH GESSO AND GOLD-LEAFED. THESE CLOCKS ALSO HAVE SMALL BALL FEET THAT HAVE BEEN COVERED WITH GESSO AND GOLD-LEAFED. THE 3RD STYLE HAS 'CROSS' FINIALS LIKE OBSERVED ON THE CLOCK I SOLD IN AN AUCTION THAT ENDED THIS EVENING. BOTH THE 'CROSS FINIAL' AND GOLD LEAFED STYLES ARE REASONABLEY RARE WITH THE 'CROSS FINIAL' STYLE BEING THE SLIGHTLY RARER OF THE TWO. THE LAST PHOTO SHOWS 2 DOCUMENTED EXAMPLES OF THIS CLOCK THAT I WAS ABLE TO FIND. THE PHOTO TO THE LEFT IS FOUND ON PAGE 105 OF THE BOOK TITLED AMERICAN SHELF AND WALL CLOCKS BY ROBERT W. D. BALL. THIS CLOCK RESIDES IN THE AMERICAN CLOCK AND WATCH MUSEUM IN BRISTOL, CT. BALL VALUES THIS CLOCK AT $350. THE PHOTO TO THE RIGHT WAS TAKEN FROM THE COTTONE AUCTIONS WEBSITE WHERE IT SOLD AT AN OCT. 22, 2004 AUCTION FOR A WHOPPING $2970 (INCLUDES 10% BUYER'S PREMIUM)! THIS PRICE WOULD BE UNREALISTIC TODAY EVEN IF IT DID HAVE AN ORIGINAL KIRK CAST IRON BACK PLATE MOVEMENT (I COULD NOT FIND A DESCRIPTION FOR THIS CLOCK TO VERIFY THE STYLE OF MOVEMENT). NOTE THAT BOTH THE EXAMPLES SHOWN IN THE LAST PHOTO HAVE AT LEAST ONE FINIAL 'TIP' MISSING. THESE WERE VERY DELICATE AND, THUS, EASILY BROKEN. BOTH FINIAL 'TIPS' HAVE BEEN LOST FROM THE CLOCK OFFERED HERE.THE ONLY MOVEMENTS I HAVE SEEN IN THESE CLOCKS ARE 30-HR. CHARLES KIRK STYLE MOVEMENTS INVENTED BY KIRK ca.1843 (BUT USED IN THE 8-DAY AND 30-DAY VERSIONS SEVERAL YEARS BEFORE THE 1843 PATENT WHICH COVERED THE 8-DAY VERSION ONLY). THESE MOVEMENTS, INITIALLY WITH BRASS SPRINGS AND CAST IRON BACK PLATES & SPRING BARRELS, EVOLVED OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS TO THE POINT THAT THE CAST IRON BACK PLATES AND BARRELS WERE REPLACED WITH A STAMPED BRASS PLATE WITH NO BARRELS. THE EVOLUTION OF BOTH THE 8-DAY AND 30-HR. KIRK MOVEMENTS IS NICELY DOCUMENTED IN THE BOOK TITLED THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF JOSEPH IVES TO CONNECTICUT CLOCK TECHNOLOGY 1810-1862 BY KENNETH D. ROBERTS, CHAPTER X. THE EVOLUTION OF THE 30-HR. MOVEMENT IS REPRODUCED FROM THE ABOVE BOOK IN THE NEXT TO LAST PHOTO. THE MOVEMENT IN THIS CLOCK MATCHES THAT SHOWN IN THE THIRD/LAST VERSION. AS NOTED IN THE ABOVE BOOK WHEN THE CAST IRON BACK PLATE WAS ELIMINATED FOR THE 30-HR. MOVEMENT THERE WAS A SLIGHT CHANGE IN WHEEL AND PINION TEETH/LEAVES COUNT ON THE TIME SIDE WHILE THE STRIKE SIDE REMAINED UNCHANGED. NOTE THAT ALL OF THESE MOVEMENTS WERE MADE ORIGINALLY WITH BRASS SPRINGS AS STEEL SPRINGS WERE STILL PROHIBITABLY EXPENSIVE. THE MOVEMENT IN THIS CLOCK HAS STEEL SPRINGS ON BOTH THE TIME AND STRIKE SIDE MOST LIKELY DUE TO PRIOR BRASS SPRING BREAKAGE AND/OR LOSS OF TENSION. NOTE THAT BREWSTER LIKELY HAD PURCHASED THE KIRK PATENT BY 1843 WHEN THE PATENT WAS ISSUED (PATENT NO. 3233 ISSUED ON AUG. 26, 1843 AND TITLED 'CLOCK') AS KIRK LEFT BRISTOL IN THAT YEAR. THE MOVEMENT MODIFICATIONS WERE LIKELY ALL MADE BY BREWSTER OR SOMEONE IN HIS EMPLOY (POSSIBLY ANSON L. ATWOOD AS NOTED IN THE ABOVE ROBERTS REFERENCE). BREWSTER ALSO OWNED THE JOSEPH SHAYLOR IVES PATENT NO. 723 TITLED 'MODE OF APPLYING SPRINGS TO CLOCKS' ISSUED ON MAY 4, 1838 WHICH COVERED THE USE OF BRASS SPRINGS TO POWER CLOCKS. THESE 2 PATENTS GAVE BREWSTER EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS TO MAKE THE FIRST CONVENTIONAL BRASS SPRING DRIVEN MOVEMENTS IN AMERICA.3/4 STEEPLE CLOCKS ARE NOT VERY COMMON. I FOUND ONLY A FEW EXAMPLES IN VARIOUS HOROLOGICAL PUBLICATIONS INCLUDING: 1. INGRAHAM CLOCKS & WATCHES BY TRAN DUY LY, FIG. 44; 2. AMERICAN SHELF AND WALL CLOCKS BY ROBERT W. D. BALL, PAGES 89, 98, 105; 3. HANDBOOK OF CLOCKS PRODUCED BY CHARLES KIRK, ELISHA BREWSTER AND BREWSTER & INGRAHAMS AT BRISTOL, CONNECTICUT, 1828-1852 BY BILL ULTSCH AND DOUB COWAN, FIG. 63. AS NOTED ABOVE THE FINISH ON THIS CLOCK IS VERY OLD AND PERHAPS ORIGINAL. THUS, IT DOES HAVE SOME LOSSES DUE TO 'BUMPS' AND 'RUBS' AND 'CHECKERING' DUE TO AGE. I COULD HAVE REMOVED THE TOP OF THE FINISH WITH ALCOHOL BUT CHOSE NOT TO. INSTEAD, I LEFT THE FINISH AS IS. IT ADDS CONSIDERABLE 'ORIGINALITY' TO THE CLOCK. ALL I DID WAS POLISH THE CASE WITH A QUALITY CABINEMAKER'S WAX TO CLEAN AND BRIGHTEN THE FINISH. AS ALSO NOTED ABOVE, THE ORIGINAL ENGRAVED IMAGE ON THE LOWER GLASS IS TITLED "PRESIDENT'S HOUSE". YOU CAN JUST SEE THE TITLE AT LOWER CENTER (IT IS ACTUALLY EASIER TO VIEW FROM THE BACK). THE ENGRAVING AND PAINT IS BRITTLE AND DOES SHOW SOME LOSS. THE REMAINING IMAGE COULD BE BETTER STABILIZED BY AN EXPERT REVERSE GLASS RESTORER. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW ONE JUST ASK. THE IMAGE ITSELF IS REFERENCED IN THE NAWCC WATCH AND CLOCK BULLETIN, JAN./FEB., 2020, PLATE 70, PAGE 71. IT IS IN AN EXCELLENT ARTICLE TITLED ENGRAVED IMAGES. A HISTORICAL LOOK AT THE DEVELOPMENT AND USE IN CLOCK TABLETS BY PAUL HENION, pp. 8-91. AS NOTED BY PAUL, THE ORIGIN OF THIS IMAGE IS NOT KNOWN BUT IT IS NEARLY IDENTICAL TO AND LIKELY COPIED FROM THE IMAGE FROM AMERICAN SCENERY, VOL. 2 PUBLISHED IN LONDON IN 1840. THE UPPER GLASS IS ALSO ORIGINAL AS IT DOES SHOW ITS AGE WITH A NUMBER OF DEFECTS SUCH AS BUBBLES BEING VISIBLE. IN ADDITION, IT IS HELD IN THE DOOR WITH ORIGINAL PUTTY.THE ORIGINAL MOVEMENT IS WORKING FINE AND SHOULD DO SO FOR MANY YEARS. IT IS CLEAN AND THE PIVOT HOLES SHOW LITTLE WEAR. THE STEEL SPRINGS ALSO LOOK RELATIVELY NEW. THE HANDS ARE ORIGINAL AND TYPICAL OF THOSE FOUND IN EARLY BREWSTER & INGRAHAMS CLOCKS. THE PENDULUM IS PERIOD. THE KEY MAY BE OLD BUT IT IS DIFFICULT TO TELL. THE DOOR LATCH IS ORIGINAL WHILE THE KEY IS A RECENT REPLACEMENT. THE ESCUTCHEON DOES NOT LOOK ORIGINAL TO ME ALTHOUGH IT IS OLD. NOTE THE NUMBER WRITTEN ON THE BACK OF THE BACKBOARD SHOWN IN ONE OF THE LATER PHOTOS. IT APPEARS TO BE '2758'. IT IS WRITTEN IN 'OLD STYLE' AND APPEARS TO BE ORIGINAL. I HAVE SEEN NUMBERS LIKE THIS ON A NUMBER OF CASES. I BELIEVE THEY ARE INVENTORY NUMBERS AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REFER TO THE NUMBER OF CLOCKS MADE. THE VERY TIPS OF THE FINIALS HAVE BEEN LOST AS DESCRIBED ABOVE. WHEN I OBTAINED THE CLOCK ALL OF THE GOLD LEAF WAS GONE. I RE-GOLD LEAFED THE FINIALS AND FEET THE NORMAL WAY (GESSO + RED CLAY BOLE WITH RABBIT SKIN GLUE + WETTING WITH ALCOHOL AND APPLYING THE LEAF). SEE PHOTOS FOR ALL DETAILS. A NICE, REASONABLY RARE CLOCK THAT HAS SURVIVED ALMOST COMPLETELY INTACT AFTER 175 YEARS.THE CLOCK WILL BE DOUBLE BOXED AND SHIPPED WITH FEDEX.THANKS FOR LOOKING! (Condition: Pre-Owned)

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