Bronze French Clock With Cupid "the Ferryman", Hour And Quarters Chime

Provenance: France
Period: 1800 ca
Signature:     -
Functions: Hour and minute, hour and quarter chime on request and upon passage
Dimensions: 43 x 27 x 12 cm

The subject of Cupid (or Eros) is often represented in French clockwork, also in the variant as a ferryman in which he is sometimes found depicted in the company of the god Cronus.
The central theme of the clock, however, seems to be water, which is often associated with the passage of time, the flow of life and change.
Here water is represented through the masks from which the waves flow into the valve-shaped basins, from hippocampi and winged fish, as well as the bas-relief which portrays Poseidon lying down. In particular, in this panel, the features of the God of the Seas recall the representation used by Gian Lorenzo Bernini for one of the figures in the Fountain of the Four Rivers (1648-1651), a monument that can be admired in Piazza Navona, in Rome.
On the top of the clock we find the transposition of the god of Love, depicted in a boyish form while holding his bow like an oar.
Looking at this clock it could symbolize the journey of love through the stormy sea of life or time. Love, like time, is an ever-evolving and changing entity.


Movement
A distinctive and rare peculiarity of this clock is its mechanics, which includes a gear train dedicated to measuring time, equipped with an anchor escapement and wire suspension. It also has a chime when switching to hours and quarters on two hammers, with division via a divider wheel.
Additionally, there is a third train specifically for ringing on demand. The latter can be armed via a cord positioned laterally, while the division of hours and quarters is marked by a rake system.