Louis XVI Pendulum Clock

Louis XVI Pendulum Clock, France, circa 1810 
Burnished and gilded bronze, red Lepanto marble
Dimensions: height 62 cm; length 60 cm, depth 24 cm

Refined French mantel clock depicting a full-length Venus, pursued by her son Cupid. The Goddess of Beauty, with a delicate gesture of her fingers, holds the dial decorated with a bas-relief of a male figure with wings and a cornucopia, perhaps an allegory of Abundance. The Goddess's clothes are delicately moved by the wind and adhere to the body, highlighting her soft feminine forms; the base on which the figures and the clock rest is in red Lepanto marble, also richly decorated with garlands and an arrow, symbol of Cupid. The marble block is supported by winged lion paws, strictly in gilded bronze.