Tall case clock

ca. 1760

Not on view

Few clockmakers operated in New England before 1750, and most were immigrants from England. The maker of this clock, Gawen Brown, migrated to Boston around 1749 from Edlingham, Northumberland County, after training in the British guilds. Brown’s clocks appealed to Boston patrons and beyond on account of their high quality, eight-day precision, time-keeping technology in smartly dressed furniture cases that suited the tastes of a clientele amassing vast fortunes in the maritime trade. His most widely publicized commission may have been the construction of a tower clock for the Old South Meeting House Church on Washington Street, in Boston, between 1768 and 1770.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Title: Tall case clock
Maker: Gawen Brown (1719–1801)
Date: ca. 1760
Geography: Made in Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Medium: Mahogany, white pine, brass, iron, silk
Dimensions: 96 3/4 × 21 3/8 × 10 1/4 in. (245.7 × 54.3 × 26 cm)
Credit Line: Purchase, Ronald S. Kane Bequest, in memory of Berry B. Tracy, 2024
Object Number: 2024.575a–k
Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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