1765
A Louis XVI Ormolu and Patinated Bronze Clock by Jean-Baptiste Baillon and Attributed to Saint-Germain
The white enamel dial is set within an ormolu drum-shaped case with a bead and reel border and signed Baillon à Paris. The drum is raised on scrolls, above a shaped rectangular base with a pierced ormolu grill, with a lion’s mask holding golden swags of fabric falling across and around the base with reeded sides and rosette corners. The clock is surmounted by a fabric-draped sphere, with masks to the sides.
Literature:
This model draws its inspiration from the clock known as "à l'Emploi du Temps", offered by Madame Geoffrin to Diderot (cf. C. Baulez, "La Pendule à la Geoffrin, a successful model" in L'Estampille - l' Object of Art, n°224, April 1989, pp. 34-41). The success of the so-called "Geoffrin" clock was not denied throughout the second half of the 18th century and certain bronziers did not hesitate to adapt it by reinterpreting it, such as Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain who returned the dial in the center of the composition and slightly straightened the figure of the Etude (cf. J-D. Augarde, "Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain" in H. Ottomeyer and P. Pröschel, Vergoldete Bronzen, Munich, 1986, vol. II, p.532, Fig. 12). The figure of the Study adorning the clocks of Saint-Germain is undoubtedly inspired by the work of the sculptor Louis-Félix de La Rue or Louis-Claude Vassé from the collections of Ange-Laurent Lalive de Jully (cf. C. Baulez, op.cit., pp. 40-41). A very similar one but with not such a good dial was donated in 1929 by Ogden Mills to the Metropolitan Museum in New York (inv. 29. 180.3)
A Louis XVI Ormolu and Patinated Bronze Clock by Jean-Baptiste Baillon and Attributed to Saint-Germain
Measurements
| Dimensions | CM | Inches |
|---|---|---|
| Width: | 29.5 | 11.5 |
| Depth: | 18 | 7 |
| Height: | 48.5 | 19 |