Empire table clock; France, c. 1800.

Empire table clock; France, c. 1800.

Mercury gilt bronze, enameled porcelain.
It has silk thread suspension.
Preserves pendulum and key.
It has flaws in the porcelain.
Signed on the dial.
Measurements: 50 x 40 x 13 cm.
French bronze table clock of the Empress Marie Louise and "The King of Rome", ca. 1812. Napoleon considered that his consort Josephine could not give him an heir necessary for the succession. In 1810 he divorced Josephine, which was devastating for her, but they maintained good relations and she retained the title of empress until her death in 1814. After divorcing Josephine, he married Maria Luisa of Austria, who in March 1811 gave birth to the long-awaited heir. Hence the design and iconography of the clock. A beautifully designed and executed clock, of classic French Empire proportions and in fine original fire-gilded bronze. It sits on four elaborately decorated toupee feet, under a double rectangular base separated by a rigid leaf molding. On the square clock case sits a woman dressed in the classical manner, with her hair tied back, a child in her arms and her feet on a stool with draperies decorated with forget-me-nots. To the right of the stool is a vase profusely decorated with fruit and flowers overflowing from the top. Above the base and to the left of the figure is a beautifully decorated classical harp with a swan finial and hinged pedals. The base has applied mounts that include male and female busts on the left and right surrounded by forget-me-nots wreaths and between laurels. They probably represent Empress Louise and Napoleon. The central vignette of these mounts depicts a woman nursing a child at her breast and removes the cover of an elaborate cradle before placing the child inside. The front of the cradle is decorated with a laurel wreath indicating a royal or imperial occupant. This mount is surrounded by a decoration of bells and forget-me-nots with amthemion and ribbons.