The King Of Carved Wehrle Trumpeters

This next clock is one of the favorite in our collection. It is a shelf Trumpeter Clock by Emilian Wehrle C. 1880. This clock is 44” high and 31” wide at the base and weighs over 70 pounds. The clock has the large triple wind (Time strike and music) movement (The largest Wehrle made). The clock runs for 8 days. On the hour or demand a pair of trumpeter figures appear through the carved doors…and this clock plays the William Tell Overture on 8 horns.



The carvings on this clock are done in solid walnut. There is no veneers or linden in sight…even the box used to construct the case is solid walnut. This clock is carved from head to toe… if fact there is not a single inch on this case that is not fully carved.

The top of the Roof is carved in a shingle pattern, very similar to a fine Beha shelf cuckoo…Even the underside of the roof is carved in shingles (we have not seen this done before !) The box of the case is carved all the way around to look like a tree… the sides of the case from base to roof, as well as the whole front.The large side doors are carved oak leaves and acorns to create a silk backed lattice for the music to fill the room… even the latches that lock these doors shut are carved from walnut!

The base of the clock wraps around the case to cover both sides solid. On many Wehrles the clock is put up on carved legs… but this example is different.



Rocks, trees, leaves as well as flowers cover the bottom sides… there is a one piece tree at the back intergrated into the base on both sides that has “grown” all the way to the roof line of the case… with leaves and vines pushing out in both directions… this gives the case a very nice 3-D effect against the wall.The front carvings on the clock peak for themselves.


The two pheasants are done very well… with the large spread wing eagle …just a fraction of a second from swooping down to pick up his lunch. The dial on this clock does not dissapoint… The dial, bezel and cartouches are carved from a single piece with abundant detail… the full dial center is carved out leaving small bunches of flowers no larger than the tip of your smallest finger…No expense was spared in the creation of this piece.



We have consulted with several Wehrle experts, and it is clear this was a custom carved clock…for someone that clearly loved carving... and had money to purcahse the finer things of life.

While we are aware of other beautiful Wehrle trumpeters a few inches larger… or with more massive carvings in front… it is the details on this piece (Case, Roof , Sidedoors etc. etc. etc.) that set it apart from all others.




We are confident that this is the most detailed carved Wehrle trumpeter that has been located as of today... but we would love to be shown otherwise!!!

We are offering a spot on our Blog to the owner of any other Wehele trumpeter that can take this title!

We are activly looking for the #33 Scheffel-Uhr (Wehrles top of the line arcitectual clock) to complement this piece in the collection.

Until then...we are happy to have the "King of Carved Wehrle's".

Best,


Justin