Life — September 11, 1931 — page 4: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Hammond Electric Clocks Advertisement This is a **product advertisement**, not political satire. It promotes Hammond's new "Bichronous" electric clocks, which represent a technological advancement: they continue keeping time even if power interrupts, maintaining accuracy for over half an hour without electricity. The surreal imagery depicts a conductor leading an orchestra inside a giant clock face, visualizing the advertisement's claim that these clocks keep "perfect time, even more perfect time than the exacting measures of a fine orchestra." The accompanying table-model clock shows pricing ($14.50-$37.50 for Bichronous; $9.75-$12.50 for Synchronous models). This illustrates early 20th-century advertising strategy: using artistic imagery and bold claims about technological superiority to market consumer electronics.