Leroy, In Paris - The Four Seasons. Portico Clock In White Marble And Gilt Bronze. Circa 1870

LEROY, Watchmaker to the King in Paris - Attractive Louis XVI-inspired Portico Clock in white marble and finely chiseled gilded bronze ingenuously displayed through laughing childish figures endowed with their allegorical attributes (ample and heavy fabric, flocks of roses, ears of wheat or grape vines) the centuries-old Greco-Roman theme of the Four Seasons. Now in a playful gesture a luxuriant garland of grained myrtle, these delicious toddlers treated in the round thus personifying Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn evolve on the terrace of a large base forming a pedestal for this composition elegantly choreographed. Resting on six ornate spinning top legs, the latter, enriched with rectangular reserves of appliques with fine ribbon motifs of flowering stems or ivy, is hemmed onto its oblong shape with a projection of a string of pearls. United by an entablature curvilinear highlighted with small modillions, ovates in friezes, two fluted pilasters set on their base with a laurel torus form a portico. Flanked by consoles with scrolls and clasps with acanthus foliage, the case of the clock festooned with branches of oak, myrtle and berries welcomes a mischievous Cherub to its cushions: perched on a small thimble surrounded by a twirling drape, the hands firmly riveted to a thin sickle, it seems to maliciously scrutinize Time as it ticks away over the days or better over the Seasons. Circled on its bezel with strings of pearls alternated with straps, the white enameled dial of the clock indicating the hours, the minutes in Arabic numerals and five in five by two pierced hands bears the signature (partially erased) of "Le Roy/ Hger du Roi/ Paris" -, or the surname and honorary title granted to one of the most prestigious dynasties of Parisian watchmakers, many of whose museum institutions preserve the neo-classical models created in collaboration with famous masters - bronziers from the second half of the 18th century by Pierre Le Roy (1717-1785). His descendants will perpetuate within the Maison Leroy (formerly located at the Palais-Royal then 6, rue de la Madelaine in Paris) his remarkable achievements of Louis XVI obedience, much appreciated by the Parisian clientele of the second half of the 19th century. Scientifically borrowing from its notorious predecessors which appeared during the reign of Louis XVI its architectural composition, its harmonious and weighted forms, its refined ornamentation, our Pendulum-Portico described above revisits in a deliciously playful mode the ancient motif of the Four Seasons . From then on, far from referring to an outdated theme, it transformed into a neo-Louis XVI Fantasy both fresh and elegant, this subject otherwise perfectly suited to the "pendulum object". Endowed with a gentle theatricality, this very carefully crafted watch piece will constitute for any enthusiast keen on the Louis XVI Style an invitation to recount, according to the alternately chilly, dreamy, serene, playful and mischievous attitudes of its childish allegorical figures, smiling and affable temporalities. ---------------- Quality work in the Louis XVI style from the second half of the 19th century, circa 1870. Model created by the Parisian Watchmaking House Leroy (Former Maison Le Roy and Son, founded in 1785). Signatures and brands: Dial signed 'Le Roy/Horloger du Roi/Paris'; movement numbered: "7209". Dimensions: H.: 50 cm;-L.: 34 cm;-D: 15 cm. Materials: white marble, Gilded bronze, enamel and glass. Perfect condition.