A LOUIS XV ORMOLU CARTEL D'ALCOVE TIMEPIECE WITH PULL QUARTER REPEAT

Jean-Baptiste Baillon was one of France's most celebrated clockmakers of the 18th century. He is recorded maître in 1727 working at Place Dauphine, clockmaker to Queen Leczinska and from 1751 he was Court clockmaker to Marie Antoinette. He died in 1772 having produced a large number of high quality clocks and watches, examples of his work can be found in the Musée des Arts et métiers, Paris and the Science Museum, London

Antoine-Nicolas Martieniere (1706-1784) is recorded as émailleur and miniaturist, Martiniere was named a Pensionnaire Du Roy in 1746 and is known to have established a workshop on Rue des Cinq-Diamants by 1741. Two signed works demonstrate his considerable talent. The first is an enamel now at Versailles, The Battle of Fontenoy, which is signed and dated 1747. The second is a signed, enamelled perpetual wall-calendar made for Louis XV in 1741-1742 and now in the Wallace Collection (F.J.B. Watson, Wallace Collection Catalogues: Furniture, London, 1956, pp. 34-35, plate 1). He was the first to perfect a technique for making an enamel dial from a simple piece circa 1730/40, for which he was awarded a pension by Louis XV.