30.            $50

Daniel Pratt & Sons 30-hour shelf clock, 1852-1871. The label in the clock is incongruous with the wood movement; Pratt & Sons were clockmakers and retailers in the second half of the nineteenth century, well after wooden movements in clocks had been replaced by brass movements.  It’s hard to understand what is going on here, as the backboard looks original to the case, and the label looks original to the backboard.  So naturally, I pulled the wood movement out to see if there was evidence of a former brass movement.  Although there are two unassigned holes just above the wire gong, these would not be enough to mount a brass movement, and there is no shadow evidence or wear that would suggest that a brass movement started out on this backboard.  The 27-inch case is veneered in figured mahogany with a clean finish and no obvious repairs or damage; note the rounded pilasters on either side of the door.  The dial glass appears to be original, as does the mirror.  The wooden dial is clean with dark gilding and numbering, and the hands are period.  The wooden 30-hour time-and-strike movement is running and striking as expected, driven by two period weights.  There is a complete but dark label inside.  All the evidence suggests that this is a wooden movement clock marketed after 1850, a surprise to me.  $50–$150.

I posted this clock on the Facebook CogCounters page and my esteemed colleagues were not too surprised.  They suggested that these were left-over movements from earlier years that were being used up; it was also suggested that by that time wooden movements were cheap and reliable, and so some customers wanted “old school”.