A Chinese Clock Hits the Big Time

Result EUR1,561,600

Published on 11 June 2019, by Anne Doridou-Heim

Auction on 05 June 2019 - 13:30 (CEST) - Salle 1 - Hôtel Drouot - 75009

Time was certainly money for a Chinese automaton clock from the late Qing dynasty, whose lotuses, activated by an ingenious mechanism, rose in concert with ever-mounting bids.

China, late Qing dynasty, musical automaton clock with automatic two-tone chime,... A Chinese Clock Hits the Big Time

China, late Qing dynasty, musical automaton clock with automatic two-tone chime, featuring a gilt copper basin ornamented with coloured glass cabochons and four polychrome Cantonese enamel plaques; enamelled face with Roman numerals, h. 169 cm.
Result: €1,561,600

It created a striking effect with its height, 169 cm, bouquet of lotus flowers rising and falling to the melodies it emitted, and gilt copper and Cantonese enamel basin, very similar to the porcelain versions found in gardens. But nobody expected the thundering bid that greeted…

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