Who built sought-after American regulators?
One of the most famous is
Edward Howard, a late 19th-century artisan known as the father of American watch
making. His clocks sell for more than $50,000.
How do you judge the quality of a regulator?
Good clocks come in good
cases. The clock should stand securely against the wall. It should not have
split wood or missing pieces. There should be no signs of abuse.
What about mantel clocks?
There is a distinction in quality of engineering
between American and European mantel clocks. Many American shelf clocks from the
early 19th century only run for 30 hours, so you have to wind them every single
day. If I were buying a mantel clock, I would want to wind it every eight days,
like a French mantel clock. The French clocks are also more elegant and better
made. The 18th-century ones are made of bronze and are very elaborate, with
Rococo scrolls and figures. The English mantel clocks come in black ebony veneer
cases and also, typically, run for one week on a single winding.
What trophy clockmakers are people collecting?
One is Thomas Tompion, who
made tall case and mantel clocks in the late 17th century. He made the clocks
for the Greenwich Observatory and was recognized as the best artisan in London.
His pieces fetch $100,000 and up. As for French clocks, fine bronze clockmakers
like Jacques Caffiere or Jean-Joseph Saint-Germain are very popular. Those with
signed cases are worth $30,000 and up.
What about American makers?
Simon Willard, who worked in the late 1700s
and early 1800s, is one. A fine Willard longcase clock made of mahogany is worth
over $100,000. He set up the first clock factory in America near Boston. He was
the Henry Ford of his time. The clocks sold for $65, which was very expensive
for that time.
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