Turning the 1773 David Rittenhouse clock ahead
Craig Eisenberger
Issue date: 4/9/04 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Everyone is familiar with the adage "Spring forward, fall back," but when it came time to turn the clocks back at Drexel, one clock required more care and attention than others.
The University's tall-case clock, made by David Rittenhouse in 1773, is considered one of the most complex clocks in the world. Because of this, the clock's conservator, Eric Wilson, had to be called in to adjust the time.
"It is the finest clock made in Philadelphia in the 18th Century," Wilson said. "It was long regarded as the most important American clock in existence."
Unlike most clocks of its time, which require weekly winding, this one is capable of running for an entire month, Wilson said.
It was originally built for Joseph Potts, who paid $640 for it, said Jacqueline Degroff, curator for The Drexel Collection.
"Joseph Potts refused the clock, saying it was too elaborate," she said.
An orrery, which is a mechanical model of the solar system, sits atop the clock face. This provides indication of the time the clock was made since the orrery contains the only six known planets of the time.
A lunarium, which indicates the phase of the moon, sits below the orrery.
On the clock-face, the hands not only indicate the hour, minutes and seconds, but the day of the month as well.
The upper left corner has an indicator that corresponds to the positions of the sun and moon within the zodiac, and the lower left corner indicates the moon's orbit of the earth.
There is a sliding bar on the right that determines how often the clock will chime. It can chime as often as every quarter hour or be turned off completely.
Its chimes are another intriguing feature.
This Rittenhouse clock features 10 different English tunes with a sliding bar to indicate which songs are to be played.
According to Niki Gianakaris, assistant director of the Drexel News Bureau, the clock was presented to the Drexel Institute of Technology in 1894 by George Childs, the widow of the publisher of Recollections, a book which details the history of the clock.
The clock's creator was born in 1732 at Paper Mill Run in a house that still stands in Fairmount Park. He lived his life as an astronomer, mathematician, surveyor and scientific instrument maker.
Rittenhouse also served as a member of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention in 1776 and as the first State Treasurer of Pennsylvania in 1778.
He was appointed head of the American Philosophical Society in 1791 upon the death of Benjamin Franklin. In 1792, Rittenhouse was appointed the first director of the United States Mint by George Washington.
Thomas Jefferson makes reference to Rittenhouse in his 1782 piece, Notes on the State of Virgina, saying, "He has not indeed made a world; but he has by imitation approached nearer its maker than any man who has ever lived from the creation of this day."
The Rittenhouse tall-case clock is currently on display in the Antoinette and Ray Westphal Picture Gallery.
The University's tall-case clock, made by David Rittenhouse in 1773, is considered one of the most complex clocks in the world. Because of this, the clock's conservator, Eric Wilson, had to be called in to adjust the time.
"It is the finest clock made in Philadelphia in the 18th Century," Wilson said. "It was long regarded as the most important American clock in existence."
Unlike most clocks of its time, which require weekly winding, this one is capable of running for an entire month, Wilson said.
It was originally built for Joseph Potts, who paid $640 for it, said Jacqueline Degroff, curator for The Drexel Collection.
"Joseph Potts refused the clock, saying it was too elaborate," she said.
An orrery, which is a mechanical model of the solar system, sits atop the clock face. This provides indication of the time the clock was made since the orrery contains the only six known planets of the time.
A lunarium, which indicates the phase of the moon, sits below the orrery.
On the clock-face, the hands not only indicate the hour, minutes and seconds, but the day of the month as well.
The upper left corner has an indicator that corresponds to the positions of the sun and moon within the zodiac, and the lower left corner indicates the moon's orbit of the earth.
There is a sliding bar on the right that determines how often the clock will chime. It can chime as often as every quarter hour or be turned off completely.
Its chimes are another intriguing feature.
This Rittenhouse clock features 10 different English tunes with a sliding bar to indicate which songs are to be played.
According to Niki Gianakaris, assistant director of the Drexel News Bureau, the clock was presented to the Drexel Institute of Technology in 1894 by George Childs, the widow of the publisher of Recollections, a book which details the history of the clock.
The clock's creator was born in 1732 at Paper Mill Run in a house that still stands in Fairmount Park. He lived his life as an astronomer, mathematician, surveyor and scientific instrument maker.
Rittenhouse also served as a member of the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention in 1776 and as the first State Treasurer of Pennsylvania in 1778.
He was appointed head of the American Philosophical Society in 1791 upon the death of Benjamin Franklin. In 1792, Rittenhouse was appointed the first director of the United States Mint by George Washington.
Thomas Jefferson makes reference to Rittenhouse in his 1782 piece, Notes on the State of Virgina, saying, "He has not indeed made a world; but he has by imitation approached nearer its maker than any man who has ever lived from the creation of this day."
The Rittenhouse tall-case clock is currently on display in the Antoinette and Ray Westphal Picture Gallery.
