Live Auction 7812Belgravia and Lake Geneva - Two European Collections
Christie’s roundel
Lot 32

A LOUIS XV ORMOLU MANTEL CLOCK

THE CASE STAMPED ST GERMAIN, CIRCA 1750, THE DIAL AND MOVEMENT LATER

Closed14 May 2009

Price Realised

GBP 5,625

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A LOUIS XV ORMOLU MANTEL CLOCK
THE CASE STAMPED ST GERMAIN, CIRCA 1750, THE DIAL AND MOVEMENT LATER
The case with flowering vase finial and trellis-pierced side frets, stamped 'ST GERMAIN', replaced bezel, white enamel Roman and Arabic dial with gilt-metal hands, eight day movement with twin line fusees, anchor escapement with silk suspension and rack strike on bell
18¼ in. (46.5 cm.) high, 13½ in. (34 cm.) wide, 7½ in. (19 cm.) deep

Acquired from Bensimon, Paris, in 1955.

Specialist note

Elected as a maître-fondeur on 15 July 1748, Saint-Germain enjoyed the privilege of an ouvrier libre - enabling him to act both as an ébéniste and bronzier. He frequently supplied cases cast with animal forms and allegorical figures to the leading clockmakers of Paris, including the le Roy workshops, Etienne Lenoir and Jean-Philippe Gosselin. A man of his times, Saint-Germain probably received a rudimentary education in rhetoric, the Classics and calculus in addition to a formal study of sculpture and draughtsmanship, reflecting the social and economic status of his family (J.-D. Augarde, "Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain: Bronzier", L'Estampille/l'Objet d'Art, December, 1996, pp. 63-82).