ETUDE ET LA PHILOSOPHIE TABLE CLOCK
Antiques - Miscellaneus / Clocks
Reference: ZE443
Table clock, “L'Etude” and “La Philosophie”. Gilt bronze, Rouge Griotte, etc. Mesnil movement, Paris, France, circa 1815. In perfect working order. Table clock with a Rouge Griotte marble base, embellished with several gilt bronze reliefs on the front (in the center, an openwork symmetrical composition with a mascaron flanked by vegetal grotesques; two plaques with children in different poses), leaving gilded areas without reliefs in the rest of this section. Raised slightly on disc-shaped legs, it features a series of figures around the clock face, which is white, with Roman numerals for the hours, Breguet-style hands, and the clockmaker's signature (Mesnil à Paris). The clock rests on a square pedestal with a relief on the front (again, children's figures) and an eagle perched on it (the bird has its wings spread and is holding a tubular piece in its talons from which rays appear to emanate). Flanking this central element are two figures dressed in antique style. These two seated figures are made of blued bronze and are based on two figures created by Louis-Simon Boizot (France, 1743-1809) for the Sèvres Clock Factory in 1780. Known as “L'Etude” (the lady with the book, The Study) and “La Philosophie” (the young man with the tablet, Philosophy), they were also made of gilt and blued bronze by François Remond (France, ca. 1747-1812) and mounted on clocks commissioned by the merchant Dominique Daguerre, who apparently requested that the figures be supported against a pedestal for the movement and that the clock face be surmounted by an eagle. Nevertheless, it was a composition that enjoyed considerable fame, and interesting variations can be found by other masters between the late 18th and 19th centuries. Compare, for example, with the one kept in the Palace of Versailles, the one in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, another in the Quirinal Palace, or the one belonging to the Prado Museum in Madrid and on deposit at the Embassy of Spain to the Holy See (Rome). Weight: 55 kg
· Size: 71x17x53 cms.
22.000 €
