Nineteenth Empire Mantel Clock - Lepaute In Paris

Empire style mantel clock signed "Lepaute in Paris" This refined fireplace clock in the Directoire - Empire transitional style in gilded bronze is signed on the dial "Lepaute in Paris". The Empire and Directory styles were based on elements of the old Roman Empire and its many objects recovered during excavations at Pompeii, rediscovered from the 18th century. The Directoire style aimed at a simpler but still elegant evocation of the virtues of the ancient Roman Empire. However and the Empire style brought a complete return to ostentatious wealth. The use of gilded bronze reached its peak in the early 19th century in France, as it was cheaper than gold or silver. For this reason, it has become the material of choice for clock cases, ornamental elements, candelabras and furniture ornaments. Bronze was the primary material used in Empire style timepieces, and patina and gilded bronze techniques were widely used for ornamentation during this period. However, thanks to the know-how of remarkable bronze founders and chasers, these objects are not only timepieces but also become works of art. The figurative mantel clocks of the French Empire featured many important figures, which reflected the regime, glory and authority of the present state of affairs. The finely chiseled and gilded bronze clock represents the Empress Josephine seated on an armchair reading her score while playing the harp. Empress Josephine is dressed in a shirt dress, which was a loose-fitting white linen or chiffon undergarment with a straight or slightly triangular figure. The clock ideally symbolizes the admiration that the Empress had for music and in particular for the harp, an instrument that sat in the middle of her music room at the Château de la Malmaison. The museum still retains his personal Harp produced by Georges Cousineau as well as a whole musical library gathered around this instrument. The harp, chair and even the pulpit are adorned with Empie style elements with images of bay and acanthus leaves and a swan. The white enamel dial is set on the face of the octagonal plinth adorned with reliefs of winged putti on both sides and c-scrolls from acanthus branches. The dial contains Roman numerals indicating the hours, Breguet style hands in blue steel and is signed "Lepaute à Paris" at the bottom. The sign also exists at the back of the clock where the mechanism is located. The walls of the base are decorated with gilded reliefs of musical instruments behind a shield with laurel wreath and ribbons. The plinth framing features an anthemion design, which consists of a number of radiating petals or honesuchles and lotus palmettes. The clock is based on four rotating feet. Le Lépaut The clock was made by the Lepaute family who were important French watchmakers. The company was founded in the middle of the 18th century by the brothers Jean-André and Jean-Baptiste Lepaute. It was then bought in the 1780s by their nephews, Henry and Pierre-Basile Lepaute. Henry left the company at the end of the 18th century and Pierre-Basile brought in his nephew, Jean-Joseph Lepaute, to help him run the business. Pierre-Basile continued to run the Lepaute company at the start of the 19th century, accompanied by his son Pierre-Michel. The Lepaute family supplied numerous clocks to the French royal family and to the Emperor Napoleon I in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. LITERATURE A similar figure on this clock is found in the Pierre Kjellberg, "La Pendule Française du Moyen Age au XXe Siècle", 1997, p. 388, pl. C. The clock illustrated in the book differs in that it has the dial integrated into the harp with winged putto in the clouds above and the imagery at the base in the reliefs represents the musician putti in the landscape wooded. Discover more products visit our website: www.royalantique.eu