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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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RICHARD REDDING ANTIQUES |
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An important Louis XVI gilt bronze mounted mantle clock of eight day duration, signed on the white enamel dial Robin à Paris, housed in a wonderful case stamped Osmond, the dial with Roman and Arabic numerals and a very fine pair of pierced gilt brass hands for the hours and minutes. The movement with anchor escapement, silk thread suspension, striking on the hour and half hour, with outside count wheel. The wonderful arched rectangular case surmounted by a reclining young girl and seated winged putto holding a laurel wreath, the dial with foliate and berried bezel flanked by fluted volutes suspending an abundant fruited and floral garland, above a stepped and panelled base with leaf-cast border on a tassel-hung draped plinth with turned feet Paris, date circa 1775 Height 42 cm, width 39 cm, depth 14 cm. Literature: Hans Ottomeyer and Peter Pröschel, “Vergoldete Bronzen”, 1986, p. 229, pl. 4.1.9, illustrating an almost identical Osmond case without the draped plinth, signed on the dial Lepaute de Bellefontaine; and p. 228, pl. 4.1.7, illustrating four designs by Robert Osmond’s workshop now in the Bibliothèque Doucet, Paris of which fig. 110 bares close similarity to the present design having an urn in place of the two surmounting infants. Elke Niehüser, “Die Französische Bronzeuhr”, 1997, p. 208, pl. 211, illustrating a very similar case model. This elegant model is based on no. 77 in Osmond’s “Livre de Desseins” of 1775, described as ‘Piece a portail grande Architecture avec 1 genie” priced 374 livres. A closely related clock with case also signed by Osmond was supplied by the marchand-mercier Simon-Philippe Poirier in 1777 to Louis XVI’s younger brother the comte d’Artois for the Salon des Jeux in his apartments at the Palais du Temple (illustrated in “La Folie d’Artois”, exhibition catalogue, Paris 1988, p. 108, pl. 18). Variations of the present model were also used to adorn the tops of cartonniers or serre-papiers (filing cabinets), of which an example is in the Musée Jacquemart-André Paris, illustrated in Pierre Verlet, “Les Bronzes Dorées du XVIIIe Siècle”, 1987, p. 117, pl. 148. Another version of the model by Osmond, with a black marble plinth was supplied to Louis XVI for the Cabinet de la Pendule at Château de Versailles. The fondeur-ciseleur Robert Osmond (1711-89) and clockmaker Robert Robin (1741-99) both reached the pinnacle of their professions and thus the combination of these two masters is of profound importance. Born in Canisy, near Saint-Lô, Osmond became a maître in 1746 and from 1764 until 1775 worked in association with his nephew Jean-Baptiste Osmond (b. 1742- d. after 1790, maître 1764). As one of the most successful clock case makers he was in great demand as a supplier to the leading clockmakers, not least for Robert Robin. Robin’s almost unrivalled success came with a string of titles and important appointments, firstly as Marchand-Horloger Privilégié du Roi to King Louis XV, then Horloger du duc de Chartres and much admired by King Louis XVI and especially his wife Marie-Antoinette he was appointed Valet de Chambre-Horloger Ordinaire du Roi in 1783 and Valet de Chambre-Horloger Ordinaire du Reine in 1786. Showing little allegiance to his former patrons during the Revolutionary years, he was subsequently appointed Horloger de la République, 1794 and Horloger du Directoire, 1796. Among one of the most acclaimed clocks made by Robin and Osmond is a magnificent vase clock with lions’ heads in the Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio, (illustrated in Jean-Dominique Augarde, in “Les Ouvriers du Temps”, 1996, p. 255, pl. 200). |