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Lot Essay
A monumental testament to early Rhode Island craftsmanship, this recently discovered clock is one of only five known Newport cases with a double cornice. Like the other surviving examples, the imposing form houses an elaborately engraved brass dial and together, the case and dial illustrate the sophistication of the region's highly skilled cabinetmakers and clockmakers. Furthermore, the clock was made for David Harris (1714-1797) of Smithfield and Providence and its rarity is enhanced by its survival to the present in the same family for which it was made.
Embellished with a concave block-and-shell carved door, the case is an early example of Newport's famous Chippendale style. With its dates of production defined by its clockmaker's presence in Providence (see below), the case was made in the late 1740s or first years of the 1750s and its refinement suggests the hand of a member of the Townsend-Goddard dynasty of Newport. The four other surviving double-cornice cases bear the works of the Newport clockmakers James Wady and William Claggett. Now in the collections of Winterthur Museum (see illustration), the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the State Department and a private collection, the cases of the other four clocks appear to have been made in the same shop, with the two Claggett examples featuring identical flitches of mahogany. The carved shells on this group have been noted to resemble the work of both Job Townsend, Sr. (1699-1765) and his son-in-law and apprentice, John Goddard (1723-1785). The carved shell on the clock illustrated here, however, is taller and narrower than those on the other four and was probably made in a different shop, possibly by the other members of the dynasty working at the time, Job Townsend's brother, Christopher (1701-1787) and son, Job, Jr. (1726-1778). For the related clocks, see Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1985), cat. 190, pp. 294-5; Conger et al., Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State (New York, 1991), cat. 89; Moses, Master Craftsmen of Newport: The Townsends and Goddards (Tenafly, NJ, 1984), figs. 1.1, 5.23, pp. 19, 235).
Originally adorned with fretwork applied to the tympanum, the clock also bears evidence of surface treatments indicating a bold and contrasting color scheme. The other four clocks from this group all bear intricate fretwork under each cornice, with the example at the State Department made of brass. Not solely a decorative treatment, the fretwork and a paper backing masked holes cut into these areas to allow the sound of the clock's chime to resonate. Based upon a remnant found behind a glueblock, the fretwork of the clock at the State Department appears to have been backed by faux tortoise-shell painted paper. The clock illustrated here retains a gilded paper backing that may have been its original treatment. Dark circular stains on this paper appear to be a result of gesso filled into the holes that allowed sound to escape from the hood. Furthermore, the capitals and bases of the hood's colonettes bear traces of gilding and the darkened columns suggest they were previously ebonized. Conger et al., Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State (New York, 1991), cat. 89.
SAMUEL ROCKWELL (1722-1773)
With a Providence-inscribed dial and mid-eighteenth century Newport case, this clock is a rare and early example of Samuel Rockwell's craftsmanship. Born in Middletown, Connecticut in 1722, Rockwell is thought to have trained in Providence before working on his own in the same city. Providing an end-date for the production of this clock, he had moved to Hampton, Virginia by 1752 where he is the earliest known clockmaker working in the Virginia colony. In that year, he advertised his wares and mending skills in The Virginia Gazette and noted he had "two good Clocks to sell, at Mr. Finnie's in Williamsburg." The dial on the clock offered here is similar to that on a clock in a private collection from Rockwell's Virginia years. Both with the same layout and similar engraved borders, the dials feature spandrels of the same pattern and distinctive round punches bordering the inner dials. Rockwell did not remain in Virginia long for he travelled to Philadelphia and was back in his hometown of Middletown by the time of his 1763 marriage to Abigail (Goodwin) Johnson, the widow of Daniel Johnson (1729-1756). Now in the collection of the Wadsworth Atheneum, a clock made by Rockwell during his later years in Middletown bears a dial that is markedly plainer than the Providence and Virginia examples. Adorned with similar spandrels, it lacks the moon-face dial and elaborate engraving seen on the earlier dials. Like many other craftsmen of his era, Rockwell supplemented his clockmaking business with revenues derived from trading goods. Indicating he achieved at least moderate success, Rockwell's estate inventory included furniture, silver and books as well as a large number of clockmaking tools (Hoopes, Connecticut Clockmakers of the Eighteenth Century (Hartford, CT, 1930), pp. 107-108, figs. 15, 39; Bailey, Two Hundred Years of American Clocks and Watches (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1975), fig. 72, pp. 76-77).
DAVID HARRIS OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
DAVID HARRIS
SON OF RICHARD, SON OF THOMAS, SON OF THOMAS
1750
STEPHEN HARRIS 1817
BENJAMIN CUSHING HARRIS 1872
THOMAS HARRIS
-Inscriptions on brass plaque on inside of the clock's door
Descending along the male lines of the Harris family of Providence, the clock was commissioned by David Harris (1714-1797) of Smithfield and Providence, Rhode Island. The son of Richard Harris (1668-1750) and Lydia King (d. 1736), David Harris married Mary Jenckes (1728-1743). Six years after Mary's death, he remarried in 1749, an event that may have led to the purchase of this clock. His second wife was
Martha Jenckes (1725-1826), a granddaughter of the early eighteenth-century Rhode Island Governor, Joseph Jenckes (1656-1740). As the plaque's inscription indicates, the clock was inherited by David's son, Stephen Harris (1753-1817). Stephen's ownership of the clock is confirmed by the listing of a clock valued at $25 in the 1817 inventory of his personal estate. The most expensive furnishing listed, the clock was located in the "lower front room" alongside a desk-and-bookcase, a round mahogany table and six mahogany chairs (Browne, comp., Genealogy of the Jenks Family in America (Concord, NH, 1952), p. 33; Estate Inventory of Stephen Harris, 1817, City Hall Archives, Providence).
Embellished with a concave block-and-shell carved door, the case is an early example of Newport's famous Chippendale style. With its dates of production defined by its clockmaker's presence in Providence (see below), the case was made in the late 1740s or first years of the 1750s and its refinement suggests the hand of a member of the Townsend-Goddard dynasty of Newport. The four other surviving double-cornice cases bear the works of the Newport clockmakers James Wady and William Claggett. Now in the collections of Winterthur Museum (see illustration), the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the State Department and a private collection, the cases of the other four clocks appear to have been made in the same shop, with the two Claggett examples featuring identical flitches of mahogany. The carved shells on this group have been noted to resemble the work of both Job Townsend, Sr. (1699-1765) and his son-in-law and apprentice, John Goddard (1723-1785). The carved shell on the clock illustrated here, however, is taller and narrower than those on the other four and was probably made in a different shop, possibly by the other members of the dynasty working at the time, Job Townsend's brother, Christopher (1701-1787) and son, Job, Jr. (1726-1778). For the related clocks, see Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1985), cat. 190, pp. 294-5; Conger et al., Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State (New York, 1991), cat. 89; Moses, Master Craftsmen of Newport: The Townsends and Goddards (Tenafly, NJ, 1984), figs. 1.1, 5.23, pp. 19, 235).
Originally adorned with fretwork applied to the tympanum, the clock also bears evidence of surface treatments indicating a bold and contrasting color scheme. The other four clocks from this group all bear intricate fretwork under each cornice, with the example at the State Department made of brass. Not solely a decorative treatment, the fretwork and a paper backing masked holes cut into these areas to allow the sound of the clock's chime to resonate. Based upon a remnant found behind a glueblock, the fretwork of the clock at the State Department appears to have been backed by faux tortoise-shell painted paper. The clock illustrated here retains a gilded paper backing that may have been its original treatment. Dark circular stains on this paper appear to be a result of gesso filled into the holes that allowed sound to escape from the hood. Furthermore, the capitals and bases of the hood's colonettes bear traces of gilding and the darkened columns suggest they were previously ebonized. Conger et al., Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State (New York, 1991), cat. 89.
SAMUEL ROCKWELL (1722-1773)
With a Providence-inscribed dial and mid-eighteenth century Newport case, this clock is a rare and early example of Samuel Rockwell's craftsmanship. Born in Middletown, Connecticut in 1722, Rockwell is thought to have trained in Providence before working on his own in the same city. Providing an end-date for the production of this clock, he had moved to Hampton, Virginia by 1752 where he is the earliest known clockmaker working in the Virginia colony. In that year, he advertised his wares and mending skills in The Virginia Gazette and noted he had "two good Clocks to sell, at Mr. Finnie's in Williamsburg." The dial on the clock offered here is similar to that on a clock in a private collection from Rockwell's Virginia years. Both with the same layout and similar engraved borders, the dials feature spandrels of the same pattern and distinctive round punches bordering the inner dials. Rockwell did not remain in Virginia long for he travelled to Philadelphia and was back in his hometown of Middletown by the time of his 1763 marriage to Abigail (Goodwin) Johnson, the widow of Daniel Johnson (1729-1756). Now in the collection of the Wadsworth Atheneum, a clock made by Rockwell during his later years in Middletown bears a dial that is markedly plainer than the Providence and Virginia examples. Adorned with similar spandrels, it lacks the moon-face dial and elaborate engraving seen on the earlier dials. Like many other craftsmen of his era, Rockwell supplemented his clockmaking business with revenues derived from trading goods. Indicating he achieved at least moderate success, Rockwell's estate inventory included furniture, silver and books as well as a large number of clockmaking tools (Hoopes, Connecticut Clockmakers of the Eighteenth Century (Hartford, CT, 1930), pp. 107-108, figs. 15, 39; Bailey, Two Hundred Years of American Clocks and Watches (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1975), fig. 72, pp. 76-77).
DAVID HARRIS OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
DAVID HARRIS
SON OF RICHARD, SON OF THOMAS, SON OF THOMAS
1750
STEPHEN HARRIS 1817
BENJAMIN CUSHING HARRIS 1872
THOMAS HARRIS
-Inscriptions on brass plaque on inside of the clock's door
Descending along the male lines of the Harris family of Providence, the clock was commissioned by David Harris (1714-1797) of Smithfield and Providence, Rhode Island. The son of Richard Harris (1668-1750) and Lydia King (d. 1736), David Harris married Mary Jenckes (1728-1743). Six years after Mary's death, he remarried in 1749, an event that may have led to the purchase of this clock. His second wife was
Martha Jenckes (1725-1826), a granddaughter of the early eighteenth-century Rhode Island Governor, Joseph Jenckes (1656-1740). As the plaque's inscription indicates, the clock was inherited by David's son, Stephen Harris (1753-1817). Stephen's ownership of the clock is confirmed by the listing of a clock valued at $25 in the 1817 inventory of his personal estate. The most expensive furnishing listed, the clock was located in the "lower front room" alongside a desk-and-bookcase, a round mahogany table and six mahogany chairs (Browne, comp., Genealogy of the Jenks Family in America (Concord, NH, 1952), p. 33; Estate Inventory of Stephen Harris, 1817, City Hall Archives, Providence).