Circa 1690
A Fine and Rare Louis XIV Brass-Cased Bracket Clock by Antoine Gaudron
Surmounted by an ormolu brazier on a stepped caddy top with gadrooned decoration, the sides with large glazed panels on bun feet, the 5.5inch burnished dial with applied blue and white enamel Roman cartouche numerals on a matted ground applied with a shaped nameplate, and blued steel hands, the single train movement united by four pinned tapering pillars with large spring barrel to a tic-tac escapement (with unusual Z-shaped pallets) and a silk-suspended pendulum, repeating the hours and the quarters on three graduated bells and hammers mounted in the caddy and activated via a cord at the base of the clock, signed on the lower edge of the backplate 'Gaudron A Paris'.
Antoine Gaudron
He became Master in 1675 and died 1707.
The signature Gaudron à Paris appeared as early as 1660 on clock movements produced by the workshop of Antoine Gaudron, but little is known today about this clockmaker. His works were both admired by colleagues and collected by the French nobility. An examination of Gaudron's will shows that he was successful and prosperous, leaving substantial dowries to his three children and a house pleasantly furnished with numerous pieces of costly Chinese porcelain.
Measurements
| DIMENSIONS | CM | INCHES |
|---|---|---|
| Width: | 44 | 17.3 |
| Depth: | 16.5 | 6.5 |
| Height: | 41 | 16 |