Clock With Musician Cupid – Louis XVI Period Mercury-gilt & Patinated Bronze Signed Ageron

Clock with a cupid musician in gilt and patinated bronze, signed Ageron in Paris – Louis XVI period. Mantel clock in chased, mercury-gilt and patinated bronze, depicting a seated cupid playing the tambourine. This model of great finesse, both decorative and symbolic, illustrates one of the great themes of Louis XVI taste: music associated with childhood and love games. The movement is housed in a horizontal shaft topped with a knot. It rests on a rocaille base decorated with foliage, a roll of music, fruit and a tree stump from which emerge finely chiseled reeds. The winged child in black patinated bronze, treated in the round, is of a high quality of modeling, with an expressive face, finely detailed locks and a very supple body. The base in the form of an oval plinth with projections marked by rosettes is decorated on the front with a bas-relief, illustrating a scene of childish bacchanalia in the style of François Boucher and Jean-Baptiste Pigalle: a farandole of naked and joyful putti, one of which holds a birdcage in the center of the composition. This scene, of great vivacity, is fully in line with the neo-rocaille style which still persisted under the reign of Louis XVI. The sides are flanked by quivers and torchere held by ribbons, the whole rests on 4 spinning top feet with interlacing and pearls. The period gilding, alternating matte and burnished, is well preserved. The white enamelled dial with Roman numerals for the hours and Arabic numerals for the minutes is signed: Ageron à Paris. This is François Ageron, master clockmaker received in Paris in 1741, active until 1780, famous for his complicated movements and his collaborations with the greatest bronziers and cabinetmakers of his time (Lieutaud, Saint-Germain, Caffieri, etc.). Several of his clocks are featured in royal and princely collections, notably in the private apartments of Marie-Antoinette at Versailles, where an Ageron clock is documented in 1787. Original movement, formerly revised. Suspension modified (wire system replaced). Key provided. Working. Comparative note: A very similar, simplified model was taken up at the end of the 19th century by the Beurdeley house, famous for its revivals of 18th century masterpieces. Their version (notably signed A. Beurdeley Fils in Paris) retains the theme of love with a tambourine, but with a less ornate base and a more refined decoration. The clock presented here is the original from the 18th century, of a richer and historically documented style. Dimensions: Height: 31 cm Width: 29 cm Depth: 20 cm