Gruen World Time Clock

A gold toned, and polychrome enamel clock by Gubelin of Switzerland. The fine enamel dial has a 24 hour dial showing the time in various cities around the world, each represented by an enamel vignette. Its companion, a same sized calendar clock, mounts aside or below the time clock, with a perpetual calendar of moon phases, date, month, and year, all controlled by a master electronic box designed and made by Gubelin.

This custom world time clock by Gubelin is the only such “Luxury System” clock in the Western Hemisphere. There are only two other such clocks at Gubelin’s Headquarters in Lucerne, and in Gubelin’s Retail headquarters in Geneva. This third example was made for the indoor display of offices for Harry Taylor in the 1950s.

Anyone hosting a landmark hotel or high end mall knows the affection customers gain for firms that display something as engaging as this “world time clock”, with its bright, pretty enamel pictographs of the great cities of the world, all matched with the astronomical symbols and designs of the calendar and moon device.

The time dial on the left gives the time of day in analogue, with a seconds hand and its 24 individual enamel plaques which align with the moving disk to show the time in the various cities. Central most is New York, above the 12:00 position on the dial, while 23 other cities are also represented.

Elaborate and beautiful clocks add status to hotels or office complexes especially where there are transients from all corners of the world who will always want to refer to the time of day at their home.

The companion to the world time clock is the calendar clock. Housed as a twin to the time clock. The date is displayed in the outer white ring, while inside subsidiary dials show the day of the week, the month, and the phases of the moon. The calendar is “perpetual”, and by means of mechanical levers, it keeps track of months with 30, 31, or 28 days, coordinating these with days and months and even leap years. A mechanical “perpetual” calendar is quite a mechanical marvel considering the complex array of levers and gears that have to work together to keep this ever changing formula correct. In fact, there are over 400 moving parts in the entire system, all being driven by a 110 volt master clock kept out-of-sight.

During the 1950s Harry Taylor, a ski friend of the Gubelin brothers, asked about the installation of their Luxury System clock in his East Orange, New Jersey offices. This system was originally built and installed in East Orange under the supervision of Frank Lottenbach, Gubelin’s head clockmaker. In 1981 Taylor’s building was sold and Thomas Whalen, the present owner and consignor, was the successful bidder at an auction offering the contents of the building, and the clock were relocated into the firm of Eckert, Seamans, Cherin and Mellott in Washington, DC.

While dismantling it for him, I asked Mr. Whelan why he had spent so much time and effort to install this clock. He replied that he was sure that the clients who had raved about how interesting it was would often return to his firm to do business because of their pleasant association with the clock whey saw while waiting to see him. “Owning this remarkable clock for all these years has been rewarded me many times over with the pleasure of ownership of such a interesting object of beauty.”