Cartel d'époque Louis XVI Fire-gilt bronze, domed... Lot 881

Cartel d'époque Louis XVI Fire-gilt bronze, domed glass, white enamel dial with black lettering, pierced gilt engraved hands, replaced green silk. Round pendulum movement with thread suspension of the pendulum and half-hour strike on bell, 28-day power reserve. Signed "VIGER A PARIS" on the dial. Restored, working. H 66, W 30 cm. Paris, 1770s. The clockmaker François Viger, born in Dieppe in 1708, was known for his sophisticated, perfect products. He worked with the best suppliers and bronziers of his time. Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain designed and produced the bronze for the famous rhinoceros pendulum in the Louvre collection. Pendulum clocks by Viger can be found in numerous international collections, in the Wallace Collection, the Hermitage in St. Petersburg and the Łazienki Palace in Warsaw. Literature Cf. Tardy, La pendule française, 2me Partie, Du Louis XVI à nos jours, Paris 1969, pp. 310 and 312. On Viger, see Tardy, Dictionnaire des horlogers français, Paris 3/1972, p. 641. See also Kjellberg, Encyclopédie de la pendule française du Moyen Age au XXe siècle, Paris 1997, p. 77 and p. 128 f.