A GERMAN ORMOLU AND PATINATED BRONZE MANTEL CLOCK

This charming clock is emblematic of the romantic, whimsical and naturalistic interpretation of early 19th Century decorative arts. Such innovative examples include clocks modelled as windmills or flowers, among which a clock-cum-inkwell modeled as a sunflower, offered Christie's, London, 5 July 2007, lot 1, (£13,200 including premium), and a further clock featuring a hortensia (or 'hydrangea'), symbolic of Hortense de Beauharnais, sold, Christie's, London, 7 December 2006, lot 4. A virtually identical beehive clock, albeit of slightly later date, is illustrated in P. Kjellberg, Encyclopédie de La Pendule Française du Moyen-Age au XXe siècle, Paris, 1997, p.434, fig. H, and a further related ormolu and steel beehive clock is illustrated Ibid, fig G.