Beautiful, large 19th century Victorian era Black Forest 25 3/8" wall or parlor clock with a magnificent "Fruits of the Hunt" motif including hound or hunting dog at the top, game bird & fish at the sides, hunting satchel & bugle or horn at the base, vines with oak leaves & acorns, carved face or dial with convex enamel on copper Roman numeral plaques and entirely hand carved in what appears to be old growth European walnut! Exceptional both in size and quality, what a beautiful, impressively sized & a masterfully carved piece! Measuring 25 3/8" tall and 18 3/8" wide, this one is on the LARGER end and with no loss of detail or decorative appeal! In heavy, solid walnut we think, the aged patina is also as attractive as can be and it has black or ebonized accents on the raised scrolls and around the clock bezel! The 9.5" clock face (10.5" diameter with bezel) is set into the 5" deep case (up to 6" deep at the top), beautiful scrolls with reticulated vines with acorns. The clock face with a carved rosette at the center and convex enamel on copper numeral plaques, the numbers in blue, lovely. Heavy, too! This one weighs just under 11 lbs, exceptional in every way! Very French but with the undeniably Black Forest visual & decorative appeal. The heavy old bronze clock movement bears a marking of "P.R." but we've not looked for or found reference to a clock maker at this point. Gorgeous! We also have five more image groupings of the clock if you'd like to see them, we're only allowed nine pictures total on the site but it's often difficult to show everything in just nine :). Also, this is one of two that we're adding this week with a few more to come in the weeks ahead. The other this week with a more Country French motif including song birds, fruit & foliage filled basket and a unique ram's head or bust so, be sure to browse some while you're with us. Thanks! If you've followed us for a while you know I'm a big fan of the old hand carved "Black Forest" items that come to us from 19th century Switzerland, Germany, parts of France and Italy, where they pleased the Grand Tour tourists and still please us all today. These hand carved treasures range from whimsical small bears to large and elaborate mantel clocks, wall clocks, wall plaques showing the most awesome anatomical studies of stag, fowl, "fruits of the hunt". I've got more to list so look through the vast collection. I've just used quite a few piece in our own 2nd home decoration , Rocky Mountains location, and love the look as well as the heritage since my own ancestors hail from that region and others. The pieces work well in Country Manor, French Country, Ski Lodge or Hunt Lodge and even in a den or office. Everything from a pocket watch case to huge plaques - from needle and thread holders to cigar caddy - these decorative objects survive today a testament to the artisan's craft of carving wood.
Very good condition. The clock does run but, as is the case with these antique timepieces, they often need fine tuning or adjusting once they reach their final destination as they sometimes get a bit jostled in shipment. We've noted that it ticks along but have not monitored it for duration or accuracy. The domed or convex glass over the carved wood face or dial appears original though we can't be certain. Most of these clocks are found without glass so it may have been added later (it is mounted in the bezel with old leather strips, wood pieces and someone has added some clear caulk to secure it further). A few tiny nips to the wood case here & there and there are cracks in the bezel at about the 10 & 3 o'clock positions but no larger chips, cracks, breaks or repairs to note. All enamel numerals are intact but there is some chipping and cracking to the seven and eight plaques. Finally, the clock hands look like they've been painted gold recently (they're normally brass and so age tarnish). See pictures for all measurements.
