Table clock
Unidentified artist
about 1625–50
Object PlaceAugsburg, Germany
Medium/TechniqueGilded bronze and brass, enameled silver
DimensionsOverall: 54 x 23.7 x 31.4 cm (21 1/4 x 9 5/16 x 12 3/8 in.)
Credit LineLina Frank Hecht Fund
Accession number22.395
On View
On viewClassificationsFurniture
Collections
This elaborate clock in the form of a building is as much a precious work of art as a complicated scientific instrument. Dials on this side record the time of day and night, days of the week, months, seasons, signs of the zodiac, and the date according to an ancient Roman calendar. The other side measures astronomical time and the position of the sun and moon at various times of day. Additional dials allow one to set an alarm and regulate the striking of hours and quarter hours. Such complex mechanisms were awe-inspiring wonders of their day. The ability to measure the known universe with man-made machines was a potent demonstration of its owner’s knowledge, power, and wealth.
ProvenanceMarch 12, 1914, Elliot C. Lee [see note 1]; 1922, sold from the Lee estate, through Henry B. Cabot, executor under the will of Elliot C. Lee, to the MFA for $250. (Accession date: April 6, 1922)NOTES:
[1] In 1914, the piece was loaned to the MFA by Elliot C. Lee.
about 1780
