Mantel clocks, by whatever name, have been given as gifts for hundreds of years. Some of the earliest clocks were table clocks or bracket clocks and were made in England. Since the beginning of time in the history of clocks, clocks have been used as gifts – hundreds of years before the ages of atomic clocks and clip art clocks or telling time with screensavers or toolbars.
The adaptation of clocks in societies around the world followed the pattern seen even today with new technology adapters – those who can both afford the high costs of the newest technology and want to be early adapters. Giant flat panel televisions, whether made by Sony or Panasonic or one of the other leaders in this area are illustrative of this trend of drastic price reductions (and many resulting “sales” and “discounts”) which continues today, though at a time scale that has been condensed perhaps 100-fold plus because of modern rapid advances in technology and innovation, and associated post-industrial era cost reductions in manufacturing, passed along to the public.
Today, mantle clocks include a host of choices when choosing a new clock as a gift. From the least expensive quartz digital time or alarm clocks to the most expensive triple chime mechanical clocks in the finest handcrafted cases by the best makers, the cost of this type of clock can range from $10 to $7,000 plus. These clocks can be given as grab bag or Secret Santa presents, or a higher end clock given as a wedding gift (frequently by the parents of the bride and groom) to anniversary gifts celebration special milestones. More than a few customers have bought special mantel clocks, or even a grandfather clock, as a present to give to themselves for a special birthday. Special wall clocks too!
Here is an example of the range of prices for mantle clocks:
Kieninger Premium Mantel Clock Model 1709-06-02 with MSRP over $7,500
Great Howard Miller Clock Mantel or Tabletop Model 645-650 with MSRP of about $45.
You can view the wide range of mantle clocks, all of high quality, at this great selection of mantle clocks.
p.s. On our last posting for clock contest ideas, one suggestion we just got for a contest included songs with any references to clock lyrics (there are many!), and people would then have to identify the name of the song and performance artist based on some relevant snippets. Any reactions?