|
An echo. Reminiscent
of another time. A time when quality and workmanship were a matter
of individual pride. A time when only the best materials were chosen
in fashioning of objects or grace or utility. A time when simple
tools, able hands and patient hearts bent to the task... the
craftsman's skilled judgment alone setting the moment of
completion. Such dedication was commonplace in the past... is rarely
found in the present.
In the hills of
Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay, a group of artisans devoted to
these very precepts produce the finest clock in America, the Daneker
Clock. For generation, Daneker craftsmen have, with care and
expertise, been creating clocks for those who elect to acquire
furnishings of taste and character for their home. This is their
story. A story of how each Daneker Clock is made to be worth
treasuring. Made to become an important part of everyday life. Made
to be a cherished family heirloom.
Rutherford Daneker, Sr.
had a dream... to build the finest clock in America. His dream took
him to the southern counties of Pennsylvania where he studied early
American clock making techniques... led him to examine the work of
Hepplewhite and Duncan Phyfe... journeyed with him to Europe where he
questioned venerable masters of the craft who had learned clock
making from fathers and grandfathers. Returning home to Fallston,
Maryland he gather skilled woodworkers and with his sons, they began
building clocks of matchless distinction.
No concession to
quality was made in the selection of wood, movement or brass.
Nothing was spared in the time or effort necessary to create a
timepiece of exceptional grace and value. As the years went by,
Daneker became quietly known as a name to trust, a name synonymous
with fine clock making. Others joined in the dream, those who flet
the Daneker Clock would someday be an authentic American tradition.
We believe that day has come. The ideal of Rutherford Daneker truly
captures the spirit of our history as a people and as a nation. This
ideal is reflected in each Daneker Clock, earning it a respected
place in the American family of today... and tomorrow.
Today's pressures and
complexities cause many to surround themselves with personal objects
that are by their very nature beautiful. Belongings that are
individually made and genuine... in stark contrast with a society of
plastic, steel and asphalt. There is also a yearning for thins of
simple honest recalled from earlier, less complicated years. You
might remember a certain clock. Perhaps it hung on the wall of the
railway station stoically marking the moment you left on your first
journey away from home. Or possibly your family was one of the
fortunate few to have an original piece by Eli Terry, famed 18th
century New England clockmaker. Or could it have been a grandfather
clock that stood for years as a faithful sentinel in the front hall.
Now you wish you had that clock; or one of its integrity... made as a
pure expression of the cabinetmaker's art. Every exacting detail
in joinery, sanding and finishing is heeded with care and precision
at Daneker to assure the woodworking excellence and beauty you seek.
Each Daneker Clock is
crafted in wood of matchless quality. Wood so fine it is of the same
standard as that chosen for musical instruments. Wood selected for
its unique characteristics in grain, hue and tenure. Mahogany, with
its tight graining, steak patterns, sound resonance and inherent
reddish tone so often seen in formal period furnishings. Cherry,
with its flamboyant grain structure and natural variations disclosed
in exquisite light and dark finishes. Walnut, the rare open grain
hardwood with interesting shades of brown that cast a refined, subtle
elegance.
Maple, the timber of intrinsic strength and subdued
graining that played such a vibrant role in the home of colonial
America. Pine, with knots and swirls that impart an air of casual
warmth... a mood of hearth and home. Daneker artisans treat each with
utmost respect in the creation of a purposely limited collection of
classically styled clocks. Each enriched by meticulously exacted
routings, moldings, and carvings... all revealing the hand of a master
craftsman.
|
When exceptional wood
and impeccable detail are the standard, only a perfect finish is
acceptable. The Daneker finish is exemplary among clockmakers and a
source of justifiable price. Natural wood coloration and graining
are given full dominion in special stains which only enhance, never
obscure the particular beauty. Through the years, Daneker has
developed an exclusive process that includes numerous hand steps and
a good deal of extra effort and attention. Only the experienced eye
knows how much sanding is needed, how much filling, wiping, glazing,
sealing, waxing. Time is unimportant here. Only the finisher's
seasoned appraisal measures the hours needed to achieve a finish
worthy of the Daneker name. The result is a delicate patina that
invites the touch... the appreciative glance... the close scrutiny. A
patina that deepens in richness and charm when gentle hands lovingly
polish its special luster. A patina in warm communion with glowing
appointments of genuine solid brass.
Unquestionably the
finest clock movements in the world are made in the Black Forest
region of West Germany where for generations, clock making has been a
cultural heritage. Only these fine movements are selected for use in
Daneker clocks. Each imported movement is fitted by hand at Daneker
to assure years of reliable timekeeping. Then just as in the case of
a musical instrument, each is tuned by ear. Since every one is
individually made, no two Daneker clocks sound alike. Each cadenced
tick tock is unique... solemnly marking the moments while precise
hands pass around the exclusively designed Daneker dial with its rich
brass numerals. Echoing London's Big Ben, the reverberating
Westminster chime sounds each quarter, half, three-quarter and full
hour, or select a magnificent triple chime. There is also a moon
dial in etched nickel or the colors of nature, quietly charting its
monthly course. Every meticulously designed and engineered part,
from face to pendulum, represents the ultimate in clock making.
Daneker Clocks have earned their place as an American family
heirloom.
The same attention to
authenticity and enduring workmanship represented in clock by
Daneker, has been employed in the creation of other timeless pieces
for those who seek only the finest. The Daneker Spinning Wheel has
been masterfully rendered as a functioning reproduction of the
colonial flax wheel. More than just another item of nostalgia, the
Daneker wheel is made to be used by patient, skillful hands and
arrives complete with flax and a special booklet that helps teach
this fine art. Daneker studied the long history of spinning flax
into linen thread and research was done on the crafting techniques
used by wheelwrights of old. Much time was spent seeking out the
antique example that embodied the grace and dignity of this ageless
art form. The result is a spinning wheel that, together with its
companion stool, makes a statement of unusual significance. Warmly
in keeping with today's respect for the honored task of creating
with dedicated heart and hand that which is useful. Here marks the
beginning of another Daneker tradition.....
|