Clock ca. 1780-90 Workshop of David Roentgen German Its severe architectural form and restrained detailing make the case of this clock as imposing as a classical building or monument. Very much in the Roentgen style is the use of finely grained mahogany veneer, applied in a single sheet from the frieze at top down to the base, combined with brass inlay and gilt-bronze mounts (see also another clock by David Roentgen in The David Collection, Copenhagen, inv. no. M 26). The stable base, large enamel dial with bold roman numerals, and steel hand that indicates the day of the month make it the ideal timepiece for a desktop. In fact, a similar clock that belonged to a descendant of David Roentgen until 1904 is seen standing on the top of a writing commode in a contemporary photograph;1 the Russian Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg displays a related model on a Roentgen rolltop desk.2In keeping with the quiet elegance of the case, the movement signed by Élie Preudhomme, marks the h