88.              $150

Chauncey Jerome fusee steeple, 1845-1850. This sharp gothic has a New Haven label, dating it to after 1845 when Jerome opened his New Haven factory (after his two Bristol factories burnt down).  It also has an uncommon overhead suspension spring and rod for the pendulum; note the unusual, inverted crutch used to connect the movement to the pendulum.  This arrangement allowed Jerome to use an OG movement that requires a longer pendulum without having to modify the movement, allowing interchangeability of movements and clock types.  While this seems like a good idea, there are only a handful of examples of Jerome steeples with an overhead suspension spring and rod.  The mahogany case is 20 inches tall with two period/original glasses, including the tablet of Barnum’s Villa, also known as The Iranistan, near Bridgeport CT.  It was built in 1848 and burned to the ground nine years later.  The dial is original with the original paint; the hands are proper modern replacements.  The 30-hour time-and-strike, brass double-fusee movement is signed and made in New Haven; it is running and striking on a wire gong.  There is a dark green label behind plastic that also lists New Haven as the site of manufacture.  I found two sales of this model with an overhead suspension on LiveAuctioneers, most recently at Fontaine’s in 2017 for $250.  $150–$250.