Mahogany Musical Tallcase Clock

An exceptional early and rare American musical tallcase clock. The American mahogany case has elegantly carved leaf and ribbon decoration, finely shaped urn finials, and delicate ogee feet, rare to still be extant. The trunk has a shaped door and shaped decoration on the plinth, often featured by Pennsylvania casemakers. Affixed to the interior of the trunk is a handwritten note that reads, John Hughes Esq./ Bo(?) of Downes by Lee/ June 4, 1770/ Musicall clock/ Rec'd at same time the above in full/ Stephen Lee. The back of the paper reads, Stephen Lee/ for the clock. The assumption is that Stephen Lee was the casemaker, although information on him is lacking.

The arched brass dial with subsidiary seconds dial with scalloped bezel and shaped date aperture is signed, Paul Rimbault, London. The brass eight-day time and strike musical movement strikes the hours and plays a variety of tunes on a carillon of nine bells. A silvered tune selector dial is in the arch. Paul Rimbault was an eminent London maker, particularly of musical clocks. One of his musical clocks is in the Forbidden City Museum, in Beijing.

American-made musical clocks are extremely rare due to the scarcity of brass, the high level of expertise required, and only affordable to an affluent clientele. English musical movements were often imported for placement in American-made cases – England had founders who could cast perfectly tuned bells, a skill that was not yet perfected in America. Even fully American-made movements were in the English tradition. There were specific demands of the American market: a different tune for each day of the week with a hymn or psalm tune on Sundays, or a “silent” Sunday. Therefore we often find either seven-tune movements or the more popular “silent Sunday” six-tune movements. This reflects the more puritanical Protestant environment of colonial America. Americans liked a lively mix of tunes reflecting British and Scottish popular songs, American tunes, and English psalms and hymns.