Jeromes and Company Ogee

[A Poage]

My newest purchase. A decent, early ogee that appears to be more or less all original. This one is by Jeromes and Company (1840-41), after the partnership of Jeromes, Gilbert and Grant and before Chauncey Jerome went solo. The finish looks original and in good shape. I will just gently clean and polish it. There are a couple veneer losses at the base that I will probably address. Also a blistered veneer on one of the ogee moldings, but it is solid and will probably just let it be. This clock has a brass dial, which is one of the main reasons I purchased it. Its numerals are worn, but I plan to leave it just as it is. This is framed by reverse painted spandrels on the upper glass. There is some minor flaking to the black background overall, but the bottom right has significant loss. I may attempt to gently touch up some of this at some point. The hands look to be original. The lower tablet I think is original, but appears that someone tried to seal it with black paint on the back. There is some loss to the painting but not terrible. I will leave it as it is. The label is in pretty good condition as well. The movement I believe is a type 1.211 by Jerome. Someone on here can probably help verify that assumption. If so, I feel certain it is original to the clock. The seller said it runs, but I have not tried it or inspected the movement yet. All in all I am pleased with the purchase and happy to add it to my collection.

 

[Jerome collector]

Your Jeromes & Co. is a nice, honest example of an early ogee. I think you're making the right decision with respect to leaving it essentially as is. You're correct that the movement is a type 1.211. It does not have a serial number, which is appropriate for the earliest of the 1.211s and also appropriate for a Jeromes & Co. clock. Snowden Taylor referred to these as "wide-wheeled" 1.211s; there was a later version that had "normal" (narrower) wheels. Very nice find. At the risk of going against conventional wisdom, it is not fair to say that "an ogee is just an ogee, and they're a dime a dozen." Early Jerome ogees in good condition are not in the same class as later ogees. IMHO.
Mike

 

[A Poage]

Your Jeromes & Co. is a nice, honest example of an early ogee. I think you're making the right decision with respect to leaving it essentially as is. You're correct that the movement is a type 1.211. It does not have a serial number, which is appropriate for the earliest of the 1.211s and also appropriate for a Jeromes & Co. clock. Snowden Taylor referred to these as "wide-wheeled" 1.211s; there was a later version that had "normal" (narrower) wheels. Very nice find. At the risk of going against conventional wisdom, it is not fair to say that "an ogee is just an ogee, and they're a dime a dozen." Early Jerome ogees in good condition are not in the same class as later ogees. IMHO.
Mike

Mike, Thanks for verifying the movement identification! I actually used the movement ID link on your website to draw that conclusion. I must say, your site is a very helpful tool in respect to all things Jerome and I have enjoyed exploring it immensely! What exactly is the “wide wheel” vs “normal wheel” referring to? I was curious when I saw that mentioned and didn’t know how to determine which mine was. I agree with you that an ogee is not always just an ogee. There are many exceptional examples. I tend to favor the early ones (pre Civil War) as they seem to stand out more to me over those produced in later years. As far as mostly conserving over restoring, I have adopted that mindset in my collecting more now that I once did. I have refinished a few in the past, and I have looked back and debated whether or not that was the best choice. Fortunately, I still feel in those cases I made the right decision. In the case of the Jerome in discussion, I feel little needs done. I do believe I may address the missing veneer pieces on the base. And as I said, do a very careful retouch of the spandrels background only where truly needed. Should I approach this task eventually, what would be the correct type of paint to use for this application on glass? Again, I very much appreciate your response and validation on the movement identification!

 

[Jerome collector]

After seeing your reply, I went back through my photo archives to confirm my knee-jerk reaction that your movement was the wide-wheeled variety, only to realize that yours is actually the normal-wheeled version. It has been a while since I've actually seen one of the wide-wheeled versions. I have a few examples of the wide-wheeled version in my archives, but the resolution is poor and won't really help for comparison. The best I can do is show an earlier 1.114 (I-plate) movement, which has wide wheels. The transition to normal-wheeled movements occurred around the time of the Jeromes & Co. to Chauncey Jerome transition. Both varieties appear in Jeromes & Co.- and early Chauncey Jerome-labeled clocks. Sorry for the mix-up. Your movement is still appropriate for the clock.
Mike