VR-251 - Month duration Austrian Biedermeier timepiece by S. Sonnleithner in Wien
Claterbos lists a Franz Sonnleithner in Vienna, who made clocks from 1777 until his death in 1804 at the age of 53. Since I would place this clock in the 1840's, I would guess it was made by his son late in his career or perhaps by his grandson. Then, to make it a bit more interesting and unusual, there is a second name on the dial. While I can not quite make it all out, I would guess it reads W_RYB__NSKY IN WIEN. I would imagine this is the retailer who originally sold the clock.
This clock impresses me, as will become apparent as I list all of the special thing I noticed when shooting pictures of it. Most obvious are the sensuous hands. Beautifully pierced, wonderfully thin, yet strong enough to have survived 150 years without damage. The pulley - easy winner for the nicest in this auction. While the mechanism, being a month runner with maintaining power, is already a very special piece, I have included pictures of two components that show the art the maker was capable of imparting to his work. The first is the strap between the plates that keeps the pulley from being wound up into the mechanism. While this strap is common on some of the later clocks, it is unusual in a Biedermeier piece, even more so with the clover cutouts and the stylized edges. The crutch is beautifully pierced, not as unusual as the pulley stop, lovely none the less.
The case is in lovely condition - Periodically I will run across a clock that has had its case cleaned up but the mechanism has not been touched - a family that was more concerned with looks than function perhaps. None the less the case is very nice with its locking door (with key), wall stabilizers and lovely carvings to the door and tail. Unusually narrow, the case is one of the more elegant in this collection.
And speaking of superlatives, the mechanism is one of the dirtier I have seen. It appears to have been beautifully preserved under a layer of coal oil from a coal-burning stove. The weight, pulley, mechanism, and dial components would benefit from a good cleaning!
One of the pieces of side glass is wavey, though the door and other side glass appear to be later replacements.
One other unusual feature is the roughly 7/8 inch wooden block between the backboard and the mechanism mount. The block is faux-finished to match the backboard and I believe it to be correct and original.
The pendulum bob weighs 2.5 pounds, the weight 4 pounds and the clock comes with a lovely old brass-handled key.
Read MoreThis clock impresses me, as will become apparent as I list all of the special thing I noticed when shooting pictures of it. Most obvious are the sensuous hands. Beautifully pierced, wonderfully thin, yet strong enough to have survived 150 years without damage. The pulley - easy winner for the nicest in this auction. While the mechanism, being a month runner with maintaining power, is already a very special piece, I have included pictures of two components that show the art the maker was capable of imparting to his work. The first is the strap between the plates that keeps the pulley from being wound up into the mechanism. While this strap is common on some of the later clocks, it is unusual in a Biedermeier piece, even more so with the clover cutouts and the stylized edges. The crutch is beautifully pierced, not as unusual as the pulley stop, lovely none the less.
The case is in lovely condition - Periodically I will run across a clock that has had its case cleaned up but the mechanism has not been touched - a family that was more concerned with looks than function perhaps. None the less the case is very nice with its locking door (with key), wall stabilizers and lovely carvings to the door and tail. Unusually narrow, the case is one of the more elegant in this collection.
And speaking of superlatives, the mechanism is one of the dirtier I have seen. It appears to have been beautifully preserved under a layer of coal oil from a coal-burning stove. The weight, pulley, mechanism, and dial components would benefit from a good cleaning!
One of the pieces of side glass is wavey, though the door and other side glass appear to be later replacements.
One other unusual feature is the roughly 7/8 inch wooden block between the backboard and the mechanism mount. The block is faux-finished to match the backboard and I believe it to be correct and original.
The pendulum bob weighs 2.5 pounds, the weight 4 pounds and the clock comes with a lovely old brass-handled key.
