While writing my post about building the 13 hour Lantern Clock that appears at the end of Labyrinth I found myself doing a great deal of rambling about that clock and it’s real world inspiration. It was starting to feel like one of those meme’d on recipe posts where the writer goes on a 2000 word tangent about their life history while you sit there wondering when you’ll learn how to make spaghetti. As a result I figured maybe that rambling was better suited for it’s own post, and heck why not include MORE rambling about the other clocks that we see throughout the movie?
Thus this post was born. It’ll be kinda similar to my post trying to track down what Teddy Bear was used for Lancelot in Labyrinth, where I discuss the prop shown in the film, some suggestions on how the prop could’ve been made… and in the instances where I’ve replicated the prop myself, I’ll take the opportunity to shamelessly plug briefly discuss my builds.
There has to be other people who find this stuff interesting right? If nothing else at least I amused myself writing all this up. So without further adieu, let’s get into a deep-dive on all the clocks that can be found in Jim Henson’s Labyrinth (In order of appearance).
The Clock Tower
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
The very first clock we see is a brief shot of this clock tower when Sarah is in the park, practicing her lines. The clock begins to chime, bringing Sarah out of her fantasy and into the unfortunate reality that she’s late for babysitting Toby.
I was really curious if this specific clock tower could be identified, so my first question became “Was this shot filmed in the UK or the USA? It may come as a surprise for some, but the opening scenes of Labyrinth were filmed in two different continents! The park scenes were shot in West Wycombe Park in the UK, and the shots of Sarah running through the streets in the rain were shot in Upper Nyack in the USA.
This video does a really great job of breaking down the specifics of Sarah’s route home, down to the exact streets if you’re interested!
And this blog post by TheTreviOwl gives a few comparison shots of West Wycombe Park to scenes from the film, definitely check out her post to see how the park is looking some 30+ years later! In reply to a comment I made on her post TheTreviOwl confirms that the clock tower does not exist in the park or the nearby town, at least she couldn’t find it on her visit. TheTreviOwl thinks that the clock tower may be somewhere in Upper Nyack due to how it’s design better matches the style of architecture of the houses found there.
I’ve tried to do a bit of googling to see if I can find the clock tower but unfortunately so far nothing’s come up. One possibility for the lack of results is that the clock tower may not exist anymore, maybe it was demolished at some point in the last three decades? Another idea I had is that maybe the clock tower is part of another building, like a church steeple, and as a result it’s harder to find because I should be searching for “Upper Nyack Church Steeple” instead of “Upper Nyack Clock Tower”.
I tried to ask Muppet Twitter if anyone had any ideas and Brian Jay Jones, author of Jim Henson: The Biography, commented that maybe the clock tower is a model.
It’s an interesting thought, it would be much easier to film an actual clock tower but maybe they couldn’t find one they liked and so they resorted to making a model or a matte painting? That would certainly explain why no one’s ID’d what you’d think would be an obvious local landmark. And models and matte paintings were used elsewhere in Labyrinth, so we know that it’s well within the Jim Henson Company’s movie making arsenal. The one thing that trips me up is that while the clock tower is on screen you can clearly see a breeze blowing through the leaves in the foreground, and that seems like that would be a very hard thing to composite a model clock tower/matte painting into (Especially because this scene is shot outdoors, where things like the lighting or weather could muck up a shot). If anyone more familiar with the movie making process can chime in with their thoughts please do so, I’d love to hear it.
Personally I’m still leaning towards the clock tower being a real landmark, but that may be simply because I like the idea of being able to see this clock in person some day. Without any confirmation either way the potential real world-equivalent of this clock remains a mystery… for now. If anyone recognizes it, please leave a comment! I’d love to know if we could confirm one way or another if this clock exists out there in the wild.
Sarah’s Alarm Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
In a ‘blink-and-you’ll-miss-it’ moment, you can just barely spot a little pink alarm clock on Sarah’s bedside table. This little clock is interesting because there’s actually two versions of it, a regular 12 hour clock and a second one that has 13 hours. As you might expect, the 12 hour version appears in Sarah’s real room (above), and the 13 hour version appears in her fake bedroom in the Labyrinth junkyard (below).
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
It’s nearly impossible to spot the difference unless you’re zooming in and looking for it, but it’s there! I actually had never noticed these clocks until seeing pictures of them at the Centre for Puppetry Arts Labyrinth exhibit where they were displayed side by side.
Close-up, plush toys from Sarah’s Bedroom by SarahOubliette
I find these little clocks so delightful. They’re so tiny on screen that you can barely notice them, and yet the prop makers still went to the effort of making a 13 hour version of the clock. Beautiful attention to detail that really warms my heart, to the point that this is one of the clocks that I’ve replicated for my Labyrinth collection!.
I’m pretty certain that the original prop makers used existing clocks and modified them to make the two versions of Sarah’s alarm clock, so that’s what I ended up doing to make mine. I actually tried searching for vintage clocks for a while to see if I could find an exact match to the one in the movie, but it’s kinda hard to search for something as generic as this. I’m sure the clock is out there somewhere, but I doubt many people would go through the effort of putting such an unassuming clock up on eBay. For my recreation I ended up getting a modern alarm clock and customizing it to match the one in the film.
This was one of my early prop builds, and it manages to hold up after all this time… probably because I mostly just slapped a new coat of paint onto an existing clock, but still. It looks like same clock I used as a base is still on sale after all these years so maybe one of these days I’ll pick up a second clock to make into a 12 hour clock, purely so I can swap between the two for my own amusement.
The First 13 Hour Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
This clock is notable because it’s the first 13 hour clock we see in the film, appearing as part of Sarah’s introduction to Jareth’s kingdom. Jareth summons the clock and explains to Sarah that she has 13 hours to solve the Labyrinth before her baby brother Toby becomes “one of us… forever”.
This clock is one of the few that I haven’t replicated. Currently I don’t have plans to, but I also didn’t plan on making four unique clocks from Labyrinth to begin with, so never say never. If I were to replicate this prop I would try and find an existing one and modify it, as I’m pretty sure that’s what the original prop makers did. My general rule of thumb is that if the prop didn’t get much screen time and it does not have a design specific to the events of the plot (Like Sarah’s Music Box), then it’s likely that prop makers modified an existing item to save time and money.
Out of curiosity I did a bit of googling and I found a few clocks that somewhat resembled the one in Labyrinth. Those clocks were described as a ‘French Napoleon III’ wall clock, usually involving mother of pearl in some way. I’ve also seen a few clocks described as ‘Boulle’ clocks, boulle being the brown tortoiseshell inlay seen on the clock face.
Antique French Boulle Wall Clock Black Enamel Case
Antique French Napoleon lll Mother of Pearl Inlay Wall Clock
It’s hard to tell without a better quality image of the movie clock, but I think I’m on the right trail here. At first I thought the decorative elements on the film-used clock were raised carved details, but they do have an irregular, slightly mottled appearance that seems to match the mother-of-pearl inlays on the French Napoleon clocks. Sadly these clocks are a tad expensive to buy just to turn it into a Labyrinth prop build, not to mention I don’t know if I have it in me to permanently modify a true antique clock for my silly hobby. So unless someone makes a modern replica I could customize guilt-free I probably won’t be adding this prop to my collection anytime soon.
The Throne Room Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
This is probably the most iconic clock in Labyrinth, the clock that hangs in Jareth’s throne room. Because it sits in Jareth’s throne room we actually see it multiple times in the film (most other clocks are a ‘one-and-done’ kinda deal). The first appearance comes during the Magic Dance sequence, where we get a loving close-up of this clock shortly before Jareth declares to Toby “In 9 hours and 23 minutes… you’ll be mine”. We also see a very similar shot of this clock at the end of the film, where we can see how Sarah has 10 minutes or less to find Toby.
Outside of the movie this clock has also appeared in the Centre for Puppetry Arts Labyrinth exhibition, though it’s lacking the gears, bell, and the little figure that accompany this clock in the film.
Atlanta Labyrinth Exhibit – Jen Yates (Epbot)
The bell and figure are super easy to miss since the camera is usually focusing on the clock face, you can just barely get peeks of them during the Magic Dance song in the upper left corner. Presumably if this was a real clock the little figure would turn and strike the bell to ring in the new hour. Very cute little touch, I wonder where these elements ended up after filming ended? Maybe they were built into the set, and that’s why only the bare clock has shown up at exhibits.
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
As far as I know we don’t have a good image of the full clock, though the Labyrinth board game does have a stylized version that acts as a turn counter. This is actually what made me take a closer look at the clock the next time I watched the movie, I had gotten used to how the clock looked in the Centre for Puppetry Arts exhibit so I wasn’t used to seeing it with the attached bell/figure. My copy of the board game is currently buried in a tupperware box in my storage closet, so in lieu of digging that out to get a single picture instead I’d rather share this beautiful poster by artist Julian Totina Tedesco, which also features the throne room clock.
Julian Totina Tedesco – Poster for Mondo 2019
Anyways, the bare clock is the version that I’ve recreated. It was actually the first and third clock I replicated from Labyrinth, the first version being a now VERY rough replica made primarily out of EVA foam that I’m too embarrassed to link to directly. The redo of this clock (My ‘third’ clock build from Labyrinth) was inspired by this post by Jen and John Yates of Epbot, who are not only lovely people but wonderful makers who are big sources of inspiration for me. As mentioned I’m a little embarrassed by how rough the first clock looks, so I’m really glad I could copy Jen’s technique and make a more polished clock that I’m really happy to hang on my wall.
REDO: 13 Hour Throne Room Clock
Maybe one day I’ll try and add the gears, bell, and little figure. I’d really have to commit to where I hang this clock if I did that, I’d probably have to attach it permanently to a wall due to the weight of all the addons. If I were a smarter person it’d also be fun to rig something up where it did move/chime at every hour. Something to aim for in the future perhaps!
The Underground Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
This clock appears after Jareth confronts Sarah in the Labyrinth underground, asking her how she’s fairing. When she takes the bait and replies “It’s a piece of cake”, Jareth conjures up yet another clock and turns it forward a few hours, punishing Sarah’s confidence by giving her less time to save Toby.
This clock is clearly very ornate, and likely made out of some kind of brass or plated metal. As with the first 13 hour clock I think this one is likely a pre-existing clock that the prop makers customized to have the 13 hour clock face. So off to google I went, and after a bit of research I think this clock is a ‘Cartel’ clock, which is chiefly caricaturized by how the clock resembles a cartouche. It may specifically be a French Cartel Clock based on what I’ve seen on google, where clocks with these keywords seem pretty similar to the one shown in Labyrinth.
French Cartel Wall Clock
French Mantle or Wall Clock
I actually did a double take when I saw that clock on the right on Etsy, at first glance it was a pretty strong match for the one in the film! And then I did another double take when I saw the 2,550 CAD dollar price tag. The listings I’m finding for this clock are so pricey that, assuming the screen-used clocks were antiques, my gut feeling is that the Labyrinth prop makers only rented this clock for the duration of filming.
I’m not a part of the film industry so take this all with a grain of salt, but I imagine with this and the other clocks I suspect were modified antiques the prop makers pulled from an existing prop library. I know that film studios have large collections of costumes that they recycle from film to film, so I’m fairly confident that they do the same for props as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if Labyrinth prop makers only used temporary measures to modify these clocks, restoring them to their original state once filming was done. That way they’d still be available for use in other productions once Labyrinth wrapped. But again that’s coming from someone outside of the film industry, so I may be barking up the wrong tree! Maybe these types of antiques are a dime-a-dozen in the UK and they’re way easier (and cheaper) to come by.
I may have to keep my eyes on eBay for a modern-day replica of this clock, something about it really catches my eye and I wouldn’t mind trying to add one to my collection. Especially if I could somehow replicate how the clock magically floats in the air at Jareth’s command… though if the clock is made of heavy metal I would probably have to screw some hooks into ceiling joints and get some super strong wire to hang it up, least I come home one day and my clock has punched a hole in my floor.
The Ballroom Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
This clock appears during the infamous ballroom sequence. As Sarah begins to wake up from the dream Jareth has tried to trap her in, this clock begins to chime. I feel like this clock gives Sarah that extra little push to break free of the spell, the chiming is a very blunt reminder of her quest to save Toby and how time is of the essence.
I’ve posted about this clock before, as this is yet another clock I’ve replicated. Well sort of, this was a ‘in the spirit of’ prop replica where I couldn’t match the exact clock used in the film, I just went for one that had a similar look and feel. In that build post I theorized that this was yet another real clock that the prop makers customized with a matching clock console (The little shelf the clock sits on).
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
The clock in the film appears to be a mantle clock primarily made out of metal, and if my assumption about it being an existing clock is correct, originally came with porcelain numbers (This seems to be common in antique clocks of this style). The below clocks have examples of boulle which I briefly mentioned earlier in this blog post. Originally I thought the clock in the movie was made entirely of brass or some other plated metal, but maybe it does indeed have a tortoiseshell inlay and the lighting of the scene just makes it hard to pick that detail out?
As a side note I’ve seen this clock also described as a Cartel clock as they share a similar shape/scroll work details. Most of the clocks I’m seeing described as Cartel clocks are meant to be hung on a wall, so I think the main characteristic of the ballroom clock (And what makes it a mantle clock) is that this clock is meant to stand on a shelf. But I must emphasise that I am just making uneducated assumptions based on google, please don’t treat my word as gospel! And by all means if any clock experts out there read this post please give your thoughts in the comments below.
An 18th Century Louis Xv, Ormolu-mounted, Boulle Marquetry, Cartel Clock
A Louis XV-style mantle clock with console base
For my attempt at replicating this prop I tracked down a full metal clock, forgoing trying to find a clock console. I figured not only would it be harder to find a clock with a matching console, but I’m gonna be putting this clock on my existing shelves anyways, so a console wasn’t necessary. I think this wee brass clock successfully replicates the feel of the clock in the movie, even if it’s not a perfect match.
Clocks are really satisfying to make over, maybe because you get that extra “Wow” factor because the clocks are working items. It’s sort of like when toys have an “action feature”, that extra little bit does wonders for turning a lifeless lump into something that feels just a tiny bit more alive. Though that said, I rarely keep all my clocks wound these days, mostly because I’ve made far too many of them and the incessant ticking would probably make me crazier than I already am.
The Goblin City Clock
This clock took me by complete surprise! I was re-watching the movie try and check that I wasn’t forgetting an obvious clock, and low-and-behold it turns out there’s a very easy to miss clock in the background of the Goblin City. Much like the little alarm clock in Sarah’s bedroom this clock doesn’t get focused on in the film, which is unfortunate because I wouldn’t mind getting a closer look at it.
This clock can be spotted just as Sarah and the gang make their way to the main courtyard of the Goblin City, just before Jareth sounds the alarm and the streets are filled with rampaging Goblins.
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
I’m going to hazard a guess that the clock was a fully custom non-working clock, possibly made out of wood or a material made up to look like wood (Like insulation foam). There’s a design of some sort in the middle of the clock, but I can’t quite make out what it’s meant to be. A flower maybe? The clock is very asymmetrical and irregular, I’m sure the idea is that one of the goblin citizens made it themselves and didn’t have the skills (Or desire) to make it both functional and pretty.
This clock is such a simple build that it makes me very tempted to make this one for myself, though without a higher resolution image I’m not sure I’d be able to make a very accurate replica. Still, it was fun to spot an unknown-to-me clock in this film. I was watching the latest bluray re-release of Labyrinth, so I feel like that helped this clock finally catch my eye (Which makes me feel very justified for always buying the newest copy of Labyrinth whenever they release one).
The Lantern Clock
Movie Screencaps – Labyrinth (1986)
The final 13 hour clock in the film, this clock appears as the world of the Labyrinth is crumbling, floating behind Jareth it helps punctuate his declaration that he has “re-ordered time” for Sarah. As mentioned earlier this clock was inspiration behind this blog post as I had a few things to say about this particular clock that didn’t feel like it really belonged in the build thread.
In build thread for my prop replica I theorized that the actual movie clock, a Lantern clock, is likely a bit of custom work by the prop makers. The main tell, for me at least, is how big the clock is… I’m very doubtful they found an existing clock this huge! These images come from a user on Twitter/Reddit who reveals that their Uncle, a clock collector, now owns the actual clock used in the film.
While it seems likely the clock was a custom piece, there does appear to be some real-life inspiration for this clock. Here’s a bit of a history lesson for you courtesy of Jessmrian, a fellow Labyrinth prop replica enthusiast who messaged me on Instagram with a bit of info about this clock. The Labyrinth clock appears to be based off an existing Thomas Moore Lantern clock. The main giveaway is the decorative fretwork on the top of the clock, which is pretty identical to the fretwork on the Labyrinth version. Although the rest of the clock is not a perfect match to the Labyrinth one, the general look and feel of the clock is also very similar.
Full disclosure, I think the clock pictured above might be a ‘modern’ replica based on what Google’s telling me, but I’m assuming that it’s an accurate replica of the original clock. Also, I have no idea what they mean by ‘modern’ because I sure as heck couldn’t find a current day seller of this clock. So ‘modern’ might mean ’60 years ago’, which doesn’t feel modern to me but I guess it is relative to the 1700s when Thomas Moore was operating.
I actually started my build for this clock by poking around on eBay to see if I could find an existing clock to modify, but after a bit of searching I can say that replica or otherwise, Thomas Moore clocks are quite pricey in addition to being very rare. In general any kind of lantern clock seems a tad expensive, and it doesn’t seem like there’s much in the way of non-vintage lantern clocks replicas.
That led me to creating my own lantern clock from scratch, which I detailed in a recent post on my blog. This build was a bit of a bumpy road for me, as I detailed in the build post, but I’m so happy I stuck with it because the final clock came out amazing. It’s nice to surprise yourself when a project actually turns out as well as you were hoping for!
My lantern clock isn’t nearly as big as the original one, but it’s pretty sizeable! It’s a little under 18 inches tall tip to toe, which means I’ve now doomed myself because it’s so big it doesn’t easily fit onto the shelves where I keep the rest of my Labyrinth goodies. I don’t have any regrets though, I think it’s a great size for the clock.
I said that the lantern clock was the last 13 hour clock in the film, but it’s not the final clock we see. As the clock strikes 13 in the world of the Labyrinth the scene transitions to Sarah’s home. We see Jareth, reduced to his owl form, fly out the window, and the camera pans over to this chiming 12 hour lantern clock sitting on a clock console in the living room. Do you think Sarah thinks of her defeat of Jareth every time she spies that clock in her living room?
As with the other clocks that have minimal screen time, my thoughts are that this this was likely a real brass Lantern Clock, with the prop makers not wanting to spend a lot of time making a prop that would only be on screen for a few seconds. Though saying that, I feel like I should point out that the 13 hour lantern clock had minimal screen time and yet was very labour intensive to make (If my own build was anything to go by!). So that’s a good note that my assumption likely has it’s exceptions. I imagine the effort was made to give us that fun “Wizard of Oz”-esque moment of seeing the big 13 hour lantern clock change to the small 12 hour clock. Heck, maybe they made both clocks from scratch to make sure they were an exact match?
If they didn’t make the 12 hour version themselves it’s remarkable how well the prop makers were able to duplicate it with the 13 hour version. Originally I thought that the prop makers used a decorative ceiling tile to create the sides of the 13 hour version, but on closer inspection the sides of the large clock match the small one pretty perfectly, so now I think they may have manufactured those pieces in-house to make sure both clocks matched.
One last thing on the 12 hour clock: I think the clock face is likely custom, as in all the lantern clocks I’ve seen on google they all use roman numerals on the clock face. That’s something common with every clock seen in the film, which makes me feel like it was a deliberate choice by the filmmakers. At least for the western world numbers on a clock are a bit easier to read at a quick glance, so I imagine they used numbers to make the most of the short screen time most of these clocks have in the film.
Conclusion
That draws this post to a close!
13 hour clocks have become an iconic symbol of Jareth’s Labyrinth, and yet I wonder… does the Labyrinth actually run on 13 hour cycles? Or do all the clocks just have 13 hours because that’s simply the amount of time Jareth gives Sarah for her journey? It certainly adds a magical feel to the world, a slight subtle change that reminds the audience that they’re not in the ‘real’ world (If the goblins and baby snatching magic man weren’t a big enough clue).
I’m happy to have put this blog post together purely because it satisfied my own curiosity on the real-world counterparts of these clocks. It’s something I think about ever since I got into making prop replicas, “Can I figure out the exact item they used to make that prop?”. I find it very exciting in a mundane sort of way, trolling through eBay and Etsy listings to see if I can find that perfect match. Of course none of the items listed in this post were exact matches, but being able to track down some near matches was still very thrilling.
On that note, if anyone out there happens across an exact match of any of the clocks listed in this post, I would love if you left it in a comment below! And if you have a photo of it all the better, you can send that to me on Twitter or Instagram at @KOMakesThings. Regardless, thank you for tuning in!
KOMakesThings 
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