Tall Clock (Primary Title)
Unknown cabinetmaker (Artist)
Aaron Willard, American, 1757 – 1844 (Clockmaker)
Label: The clock case interior bears the paper label of Aaron Willard, engraved by Paul Revere early in the nineteenth century. Several handwritten cards are also preserved.
Provenance, which implies that the clock has been in Virginia for some time, is based on two labels pasted into the clock case. The first reads, "Sold this day to Sycles. A corner mahogany brassworks clock. Moon attachments, which was owned somewhere about 1770 by Daniel Beesley, of the county of Nottaway St. [state] of Virginia. Sold by his son Daniel about 1800 and bought by my grandfather Captain James Fletcher, owned by my father in 1855. Came into my possession in 1856.Richmond, Virginia, Sept. 1st, 1894. - R.E. Shone." The second reads "Emanuel Raab, my father, purchased this clock from Simon Sycle in September, 1894. After my father's death, on April 3, 1930, my mother, Rosabell Raab, gave the clock to me, her eldest son and to my wife, Camille L. Raab. Given under my hand November 8th, 1941 - Merril E. Raab." Further research on the provenance is required. (DPC)
Inscribed: The clock face is inscribed "Aaron Willard Boston."
Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gordon C. Raab
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
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