Counterweight Spit Jack Engine
Display: A Tasting Menu
Culinary Technique: roasting
Date: c. 1800
Location: England
Dimensions: 10.5" h x 7.5" w x 8" d
For ages, servants or caged animals turned meat-roasting spits before a fire. In the 18th century, clockmakers and blacksmiths invented gear-driven devices to replace the servant boys (commonly called "Jack") in aristocratic kitchens. A cook cranked such a weight-and-pulley wall-mounted mechanism, then, as the jack's weight descended, ropes turned gears that rotated the meat skewer. Notice the harp form on this rare example, which may be a maker's symbol. Bottle jacks, as displayed in Kendall's lobby, appeared later for smaller kitchens. In America, clockwork jacks can be seen in the kitchens of historic homes at Colonial Williamsburg and in New England.