C.1800, mahogany, the bonnet hood with broken arch pediment, floral paint decorated scroll board above the arched and painted dial with gilded spandrels, minute and date registers. This is a locally paint decorated and gilded American dial that fastens to the front plate of the works without a "false" or intermediate dial plate. The waisted case with serpentine door with inlaid ovals and satinwood line inlay, flanked by reeded quarter columns, bracket feet. The dimensions of the case are 98 " tall to the top of the center finial (95" to the top of the scroll), 22" wide, and 10 1/2" deep. Although unsigned, this clock is one of a rare group of documented New York Tall clocks that incorporated elaborate paint finishes in conjunction with rich veneers and inlay work. In our recent past, we handled a nearly identical example by Edw. Meeks Jr. In "Longworth's American almanack, New-York register, and city directory for the year 1825, Meeks is listed and there are several other Meeks craftsman working as Cabinetmakers in New York City as well. In The Old Clock Book by N. Hudson Moore, Meeks is listed at 114 Malden Lane in 1796 as a Clockmaker making 8 day striking clocks. Normal wear and tear you find in an Antique Clock that is 200 years old This one retains its original patina and first finish including a fabulous floral decorated painted scroll board which is original and in fact identifiable to the early Federal Clocks of New York City. There is a closely related example in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art and that one is documented in Dean Fales: "American Painted Furniture." The weights and pendulum are original and so is the finial. The feet are original with some minor repairs. The works have been serviced and the movement runs and strikes fine
Circa 1800 New York
