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Clock (pendule à console)

Movement by Louis Mÿnüel French
Case attributed to Charles Cressent French
ca. 1720–23
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 551
French cabinetmaker Charles Cressent broke Paris guild restrictions by making his own bronze fittings for furniture and clocks instead of going to bronze founders. Among the bronzes seized from his workshop in 1723 were figures of Leda and the Swan to be “placed below the dial” and a sphinx to be “used at the foot of a clock.” These decorative mounts are similar to those on this clock case, which also features a bronze Cupid holding a scythe, symbolizing Love conquering Time.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Clock (pendule à console)
  • Maker: Movement by Louis Mÿnüel (French, about 1675/80–1742)
  • Maker: Case attributed to Charles Cressent (French, Amiens 1685–1768 Paris)
  • Date: ca. 1720–23
  • Culture: French, Paris
  • Medium: Case: oak veneered with brass and tortoiseshell with gilded-bronze mounts; Dial: gilded brass and enamel
  • Dimensions: Overall: 38 1/4 × 22 1/2 × 9 1/2 in. (97.2 × 57.2 × 24.1 cm)
  • Classification: Horology
  • Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1961
  • Object Number: 61.69
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

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Wall clock (pendule en cartel), Jean Godde l'aîné French, Case: gilded bronze, oak, and tortoiseshell on brass marquetry on oak; Dial: white enamel and gilded brass with blued-steel hands; Movement: brass and steel, French, Paris
Wall clock (pendule en cartel)
Jean Godde l'aîné
Charles Cressent
ca. 1740–45
Longcase astronomical regulator, Ferdinand Berthoud French, Case: oak veneered with ebony and brass, with gilt-bronze mounts; Dial: white enamel; Movement: gilded brass and steel, French, Paris
Longcase astronomical regulator
Multiple artists/makers
ca. 1768–70
Small desk with folding top (bureau brisé), Alexandre-Jean Oppenordt Dutch, Oak, pine, walnut veneered with ebony, rosewood, and marquetry of tortoiseshell and engraved brass; gilt bronze and steel, French, Paris
Small desk with folding top (bureau brisé)
Alexandre-Jean Oppenordt
Jean Berain
ca. 1685
Mechanical table, Jean Henri Riesener French, Oak veneered with mahogany and marquetry of bois satiné, sycamore, holly, ebonized holly fillets, and bayberry, the top with an amaranth border; gilt-bronze mounts; mirror glass; iron and brass fittings; green velvet (not original), French, Paris
Mechanical table
Multiple artists/makers
1781
Writing table (bureau plat), Gilles Joubert French, Lacquered oak, gilt-bronze mounts, lined with modern leather, French, Paris
Writing table (bureau plat)
Gilles Joubert
1759

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