Levi & Abel Hutchins, Concord, NH Tall Clock Circa 1790

This fine tall-case clock was made circa 1790 by Levi and Abel Hutchins of Concord, New Hampshire, two of the most accomplished clockmakers of early New England. The brothers worked together from 1786 to 1803, having both apprenticed to the celebrated Roxbury, Massachusetts, clockmaker Simon Willard. Their association with Willard placed them within one of the most important schools of American clockmaking, while their work in Concord shows how that tradition was adapted beyond the major centers of fashion to the materials and circumstances of provincial New Hampshire. The case is made of maple and retains its original reddish coloring, now mellowed with age. The warm tone was achieved through a period-finishing technique that made the maple resemble the richer color of cherry or mahogany. This was a practical solution in rural New England, where mahogany was difficult and expensive to obtain. Craftsmen, such as those in Concord, adapted fashionable forms and finishes to the materials available locally. The case rests on simple applied bracket feet beneath a shaped base molding. The base panel shows hints of tiger maple figuring, an appealing variation in an otherwise straight-grained wood. Above the base, a pronounced quarter-round and cove molding leads into the waist. The large tombstone-shaped access door is particularly attractive, with a cascading grain pattern across its surface. The bonnet is in the graceful swan’s-neck form popular at the time. Its boldly shaped moldings terminate in carved pinwheel rosettes. At the center is a vase-shaped finial plinth rising from the tympanum and supporting one of three brass ball-and-spike finials. The bonnet columns are smoothly turned and fitted with brass capitals and bases. Its dial is particularly impressive. Constructed from six individual brass sections joined with brass rivets, it is extensively engraved with a time ring, calendar, seconds dial, floral decoration, and the maker’s signature. The arch is signed “Levi & Abel Hutchins / CONCORD.” The engraving has been filled with black wax, while the brass surfaces retain their silver wash. The contrast between the silvered brass and the black engraving gives the dial considerable depth and clarity, providing an elegant ground for the blued-steel hands. The movement is equally well executed. Four turned pillars support the brass plates, which contain hardened-steel arbors, polished-steel pinions, brass gearing, grooved winding drums, and a recoil escapement. It is an eight-day, weight-driven movement. A rack-and-snail striking system governs the hourly strike on the cast-iron bell mounted above the movement. What makes this clock especially appealing is the balance between its decorative and mechanical qualities. The maple case reflects the ingenuity of a regional cabinetmaker using local materials. At the same time, the elaborate dial and substantial movement demonstrate the technical and artistic ambitions of Levi and Abel Hutchins. Together, these elements make this an unusually complete and handsome expression of late-eighteenth-century New Hampshire craftsmanship. Height: 7' 3"; width: 21 inches; depth: 11 inches Inventory 226076 Price $9,500