Seth Thomas "Violin." A shelf clock. 212036.
The Seth Thomas Clock Company of Thomaston, Connecticut, made this unusual mantel clock. This form is not listed in any of the known Seth Thomas clock catalogs. It is thought to have been constructed as the result of a special order. Several examples have been found that are dated with the Seth Thomas code, which suggests they were made circa 1885.
This case is constructed as a violin or, more appropriately, a viola. This is a three-dimensional form that is well-designed and finished from all points of view. The wood selected for the case construction is walnut and retains an older finish. This walnut features a vibrant grain pattern. The carvings are applied to the front surfaces and are in excellent original condition. This example retains its original gut strings. These are located on the neck and also under the door. A plinth or base elevates the case. Beneath the base molding are four feet or pads. The door frame is well-formed and hinged from the right. This is fitted with glass and protects the clock mechanism and dial. This glass is decorated from the back with a musically formatted stencil. It is in excellent original condition. The 5.5-inch painted tin dial is in good original condition. The time ring is formatted with Roman-style hour numerals. The eight-day, coil spring powered, lyre-shaped plates stamped “S. Thomas Thomaston CT, USA” movement features Geneva stops, count wheel strike, recoil escapement, and gong with a Seth Thomas Clock Co cast mark. The pendulum is detachable from the middle of the rod. The lead bob is covered in brass. The Maker’s dark blue label is pasted inside the case and reads ” MANUFACTURED BY / Seth Thomas Clock Company / THOMASTON, CONN., / U. S. A.”
This case measures 28 7/8 inches tall, 13 5/8 inches wide, and 4 3/4 inches deep.
The violin form is pictured in several reference books. Fred Selchow’s clock is pictured on plate 272 in The Book of American Clocks by Brooks Palmer Seventh Printing. Another example is pictured on a full page (page 259) in Brooks Palmer’ A Treasury of American Clocks. A third is pictured on page 198 of Distin and Bishop’s The American Clock.
It is inventory number 212036.
Seth Thomas was born in Wolcott, Connecticut, in 1785. He was apprenticed as a carpenter and joiner and worked building houses and barns. He started in the clock business in 1807, working for clockmaker Eli Terry. Thomas formed a clock-making partnership in Plymouth, Connecticut, with Eli Terry and Silas Hoadley as Terry, Thomas & Hoadley. In 1810, he bought Terry’s clock business, making tall clocks with wooden movements. He chose to sell his partnership in 1812, moving in 1813 to Plymouth Hollow, Connecticut, where he set up a factory to make metal-movement clocks. In 1817, he added shelf and mantel clocks. By the mid-1840s, He successfully transitioned to brass movements and expanded his operations by building a brass rolling mill and a cotton factory. His clock business expanded until it became one of the “BIG Seven” in Connecticut and competed at every price point, from kitchen clocks to precision regulators. He made the clock that is used in Fireman’s Hall. He died in 1859, at which point the company was taken over by his son, Aaron, who added many styles and improvements after his father’s death. The company went out of business in the 1980s.
