67,500 CHF
THE LYRE MUSICAL & AUTOMATON PENDANT "DANSE EN SAUTILLANT TANDIS" Attributed to Piguet et Capt. Made circa 1810. Fine and very rare, musical, gold, painted on enamel and pearl-set lyre-form pendant with automaton with two animations and one figure jumping with the music. Lyre-form, gold, decorated with black and white champlevé enamel and set with graduated split-pearls, split- pearl-set hinged and sprung bezel, the back with a finely painted on enamel of two billing doves on a love trophy and flower garland on an opalescent guilloche sky background, black and white champlevé repeat pattern border, three- strand suspension chain with enameled ring. Painted on enamel with an alpine lake scene, in the foreground on a grass and flower bank a seated lady plays the barrel organ, her arm automated, to the right a gentleman dances the jig jumping up and down as the music plays, a dog is seated in the foreground, winding aperture in the lower center. 25 mm., gilt-brass, pinned barrel playing on five stacked steel teeth, activation lever protruding from the bezel. Notes DIM. 58 x 37 mm. This gold and enameled pendant with musical automaton is of a rare type with "jumping" figure. As the music plays and the automaton is activated the lady turns the hurdy-gurdy and the figure of the gentleman "hops" up and down dancing a jig. A very similar lyre-form pendant also with jumping dancer and formerly in the Sir David Salomans Collection is illustrated in "Le Monde Des Automates\
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2008-11-09
