Passage I

Carving Out the Time

[1]

When winter snows slowed the work on Frank and Joseph Bily’s Iowa farm, the brothers would devote more time to their true passion: clockmaking. [A] Between 1913 and 1958, the talented brothers created about forty intricate timepieces—many of them large enough to extend from floor to ceiling. The clocks were embellished with carvings of meticulously detailed scenes and lifelike figures. The Bily farm became famous because of it’s clocks; thousands of visitors came each year to admire the brothers’ fine craftsmanship.

[2]

The Bilys’ earliest projects mimicked European clock designs—specifically the gothic Czech styles Frank and Joseph’s parents had grown up with before immigrating to the United States. The Bilys’ Apostles’ Parade Clock is perhaps the best example of the Czech influence. [B] Complete with music and mechanically animated figures, a clock is reminiscent of the Czech capital’s famous Astronomical Clock. As in Prague’s Astronomical Clock, figures of twelve apostles “parade” to the front of the clock at designated times. [C] The base of the Bilys, clock featuring carvings of Prague’s town hall and Charles Bridge.

[3]

By the 1930s, however, the Bily brothers had developed a style of their own. As they shifted away from European clock themes, sharp cathedral-like points and spires gave way to round-topped trees and curvy leaves. (6) Their later clocks reflect the Bilys’ keen interest in U.S. history, the most notable example have been the American Pioneer History Clock. This clock—generally regarded as the Bilys’ masterpiece—has a series of panels depicting significant historical scenes from, for example, the American Revolution, the Oregon Trail migration and, the California Gold Rush.

[4]

(11) Instead, they were donated the magnificent timekeepers to a museum in Spillville, Iowa, stipulating that the clocks never be sold. The Bily clocks remain there today, telling their stories as time ticks on. [D]