Welcome to clockantiques.org. You will find a huge assortment of clocks.Our site has clocks from pre-1930 to the modern era. If you are looking for cuckoo clocks,grandfather clocks,mantel,clocks,shelf clocks,etc you will find it here.
It was a status symbol in the 1700s to own a clock. Clocks were handcrafted, and were made only when an affluent person placed an order. The clock maker frequently melted down the brass in his own furnace, cast it, hammered it, turned it, and filed it. The dial, the hands, the works, the case, the total clock was completed in the same shop. Apprentices assisted as they learned the trade. Very few people could afford to buy a clock so painstakingly constructed.
Because handcrafted clocks required so many processes, a learner or apprentice neede the supervision of a master craftsman. A youth began his training at about fourteen years of age and was bound by contract to a tradesman for seven years. The master taught the youth all aspects of the trade from the simple to the complex until he became efficient. He was paid no wages, but did receive room and board in his tutor's home. Because of the free labor provisions, the clock maker's business often increased and provided him with additional revenue. At the completion of the apprenticeship, the worker was given a letter of recommendation from his master.
The following eight artisans, appling their particular skills were employed in making patent clocks: the carpenter who made the cases. The foundry man who formed the finials. The artist who painted the glass tablet. The goldsmith who made the gold leaf. The die-maker who made the hands. The craftsman who imported and applied the veneers to the cases. The glue makers who secured the dowels and bllocks to keep the case together. The wood carver and the stencil artisan who added embellishments.
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