DIAL SIGNED BY WALTER CORNELL (1777-AFTER 1853), NEWPORT, EARLY 19TH CENTURY

Born and trained in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, Walter Cornell (1777-after 1853) had established his clock- and watch-making business in Newport by 1803, when he advertised in the Newport Mercury. In 1814, he returned to his hometown where he continued working until after 1853 (Paul J. Foley, Willard's Patent Time Pieces (Norwell, MA, 2002), p. 232). With its arched door and applied ornament, the clock's case illustrates the Newport Chippendale style and was most likely made early on in his career. For other Cornell-signed clocks, see Israel Sack, Inc., American Antiques from Israel Sack, Inc., vol. 1, p. 177, no. 461; Distin and Bishop, The American Clock (New York, 1976), p. 49, no. 90; Skinner, November 7, 2004, lot 134.