Portrait of a Connecticut Clockmaker

Ralph Earl was born into a prominent family of craftsmen, and his portraits are painted with sharp attention to detail. In this painting the subject sits in a Sheraton “fancy” armchair, a type that was especially popular in the Connecticut Valley, where Earl worked. The wooden clock on the tea table might be a kind of clock that was developed in that region for mass production. The clock and books are emblems of the subject’s skill and education, which have earned him a respectable and influential position in society. Earl also portrayed the clockmaker’s wife, and the two portraits were meant to be shown together as pendants.