Exceptional horologic works of art

Hotel Noga Hilton, Geneva, Oct 11, 2003

LOT 89

A Bird in the Bush. Attributed to Piguet & Meylan, Geneva, circa 1825, made for the Chinese market. Exceptionally fine and rare, very small, 18K varicolored gold and enamel, pearl-set tabatière with singing bird and music, both driven by one mainspring. In a fitted morocco leather box.

CHF 80,000 - 120,000

EUR 52,000 - 78,000

Sold: CHF 130,000

C. Three-body, rectangular with rounded corners, top and base with oval medallions painted on enamel with flowers against light yellow translucent enamel over sunburst engine-turning, azure borders with gold foliage, set with graduated split pearls at the top, sides decorated with cartouches painted with flowers against azure enamel, corners with green champlevé enamel and gold and black enamel foliage. The hinged lid reveals a compartment, the hinged base opening to reveal the bird scene. The bird compartment has a double gold bottom for better sound. The front panel has a gold bolt for activation, the back opening at the bird plate for switching from singing to music. D. Set on a painted on enamel Alpine scene, with a garden in the foreground, a house and mountains in the background, applied multicolored gold flower vase, and foliage. The feathered bird is fixed to the plate over the gold foliage as if it were sitting on one of the branches, it flaps its wing as its tail and beak move. At the top right corner is an applied gold butterfly concealing the sound opening. M. Rectangular with rounded corners, 62 x 40 mm, brass with ingenious mechanism driving singing and musical functions from the same mainspring and controlled by the same disc which is has pins on one side for the music, with 21 tuned vibrating blades and on the other the cams controlling the bellows and whistle, as well as the bird's movements.Seven-wheel train, fly governor set on the last pinion, female winding.Punched with illegible casemaker's mark inside the front lid as well as with Geneva gold guarantee mark.Dim. 68 x 44 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 3 - 23
Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense

Notes

This is the only known singing bird box of this unique technical construction, combining the functions of the singing bird and the musical movement in one train. The same disc is used both to play the music and to control the bird's singing and movements, and the winding is done with only one key. The combination of the two functions resulted in a much thinner movement - less than one centimeter, while small singing bird movements are about two centimeters thick - which allowed it to be placed in a smaller case. This ingenious solution allowed a complex mechanism to be more easily produced, while still producing a delightful and astonishing effect.Our attribution of this beautiful and unusual piece to Piguet & Meylan is due to the striking similarity between its conception and the execution of its movement to that of the mechanism of the barking dog watches which they invented and made. It may be that these master artisans, inspired by the idea of the barking dog, decided to experiment with singing bird mechanisms. In doing so, they would naturally have incorporated the newly invented "sur plateau" musical mechanism which they were among the first to employ.There are many technical similarities between the barking dog mechanism and this simplified singing bird movement, In addition, the execution of the movement is reminiscent of their work. The box's decoration, typical of that of objects destined for the Oriental market, also points to Piguet & Meylan, who largely monopolized that market for automaton and musical watches during this period. Two watches from the period, with a feathered half singing bird against an enamel plaque, very similar in decoration, are known. One is in the Patek Philippe Museum, the other in the Basel Historisches Museum, Nathan Rupp Collection, No. 176.Another similar snuff box is known, in a private American collection.