How much is my Seth Thomas clock worth?

Seth Thomas made clocks in Connecticut from the early 1800s through the 20th century, and made a great many of them. That is why the name is so familiar and also why most of the clocks are not rare. Value comes from which clock you have, how old it is and how much of it is original.

Identify the clock first

1. The label. Many Seth Thomas clocks have a paper label inside the case or on the back, with the company name, the town and sometimes the model and instructions. A label naming Plymouth Hollow points to before 1866, when the village became Thomaston.
2. The dial. Check for the Seth Thomas name and any model name.
3. The movement. Open the back. Wooden gears point to an early clock, usually before the 1840s. Brass movements took over after that. Many later movements are stamped with the company name and numbers that help date them.
4. The case. Note the shape and material: an ogee shelf clock with a mirrored or painted glass door, a black “adamantine” mantel clock with columns, a rounded “tambour” or camelback mantel clock, a wall regulator with a long pendulum, a ship’s or calendar clock.

What usually sells for less

• 20th-century tambour and mantel clocks, especially the later ones with simple movements.
• Black mantel clocks from the late 1800s and early 1900s, which were made in huge numbers.
• Electric clocks from the 1930s onwards.
• Clocks with replaced movements, repainted dials, refinished cases or quartz conversions.

These often sell for tens to low hundreds of dollars, depending on condition and whether they run.

What can sell for more

• Early wooden-movement shelf clocks, such as pillar-and-scroll cases from the first decades of the 1800s, in original condition.
• Regulators and fine wall clocks, especially large models with original finish and pendulum.
• Calendar clocks and unusual or short-production models.
• Clocks with a clear history, original label, original dial and hands, and the key and pendulum.

Prices for the best of these can reach the thousands, but only for the right model in the right condition.

Check what yours really sells for

Search sold listings, not asking prices, for the exact model name and case type. Auction results and completed eBay sales show what buyers actually paid. Compare condition honestly: a clock that runs, with its original finish and label, should be compared with others like it.

You can also photograph the clock, the dial, the label and the movement and let Gavel identify it. Gavel Pro searches recent sales, gives an estimate range with its sources and explains what moves the price. For a rare or early clock, have a clock specialist or appraiser see it in person before you sell.

More ways to judge an old piece: how to tell if an antique is valuable.