Exceptional Horological Sale Celebrat...

Hotel Noga Hilton, Geneva, Apr 24, 2004

LOT 94

The Music Lesson Jaquet-Droz, Genève, box by Georges Reymond, made for the Chinese market, circa 1785. Very fine and extremely rare 18K gold and enamel, pearl-set oval singing bird box.

CHF 140,000 - 180,000

EUR 88,000 - 113,000 / USD 109,000 - 140,000

Sold: CHF 157,500

C. Three body, hinged, small compartment formed in the base, predominately translucent imperial blue enamel over engine-turning, champlevé enameled borders, four champlevé and gold vases on the band, singing bird aperture with split-pearl-set bezel. The cover of the box finely painted, depicting a lady and her daughter in a rose garden playing the serinette to teach a canary to sing.M. Oval, 81 x 50 mm, turned pillars, fusee with chain, circular bellows, the bird with moving wings, tail and beak, controlled by a stack of eight cams, bar-type regulator driven from a worm-gear with a safety clutch. Inner gilt protection grill, pierced and engraved with foliage. Punched with Reymond?s mark inside the lid and inside lower compartment.Dim. 88 x 58 x 34 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 3 - 56
Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense
Dial: -

Notes

An almost identical singing bird box, previously in the M. H. Plisson Collection, Paris, is described by A. Chapuis and E. Gélis in "Le Monde des Automates", Paris 1928, Vol. II, p. 113-114, fig. 389, and three others, very similar, Fig. 190, 191 and 192. On p. 108 of the same book, Chapuis and Gélis give the following information drawn from the archives of J. F. Leschot. This type of singing bird was always made of 18K gold, and weighed, without the enamel, pearls and mountings, about 5 1/2 ounces (170 gr). The price of a gold and enamel pearl-setr singing bird box, was 130 gold Louis of France. One mechanism, ordered by Leschot from Frisard in 1793, cost 50 Louis. This piece is published in "Flights of Fancy", by Christian and Sharon Bailly, 2001, p.150. Georges Reymond active from 1783 to 1815-20. Became Master goldsmith on 22 December 1783 and struck his first Master mark. Seven years later he appears to have formed a company: Georges Rémond & Cie., which eventually became, circa 1800, Rémond, Mercier, Lamy & Cie. During the French occupation of Switzerland by Napoléon, J.-G. Rémond recorded marks which were in accordance with the laws of the newly formed Département of Léman, i.e. his initials within a lozenge. From 1815 to 1820, the firm Lamy, Rémond, Mercier, Daniel Berton, used a similar mark, but no longer enclosed within a lozenge. It seems that Rémond retired or died during this partnership, since in 1820 a new firm of Mercier, Blondel and Berton was formed. However this new company only lasted a further seven years, until 14 April 1827.