Carlos IV clock. Madrid, Spain, c. 1790

Carlos IV clock. Madrid, Spain, c. 1790
Mercury gilt bronze and patinated bronze. Hand-painted porcelain dial, enameled.
With suspension of the pendulum in silk thread.
Signed: "F.L. Godon / Clockmaker of Chamber of S.M.C." (François-Louis Godon, 1740-1800)
Preserves key and pendulum
It has a puncture on the dial
Measurements: 46 x 37 x 17 cm.

Empire style table clock made of gilded bronze. The piece has been designed based on a sculptural concept typical of this time. It is a piece of classical aesthetics, with decorated base ornamentation in relief as a frieze that occupies the entire front of the base. Above it rises the clock case with a dial that has Roman numerals and gilded and openwork hands. Flanking the clock case is the round figure of Cupid and Pisque that are united by a garland that both hold. The movement of the figures leaning forward in a marked contraposto, brings dynamism to the work that flees from the strict rigidity of the geometry of the base. The boat that is arranged in the upper area of the clock surely alludes to the moment when Pisque, at the request of the goddess Venus, is sent to the underworld with the intention of seizing a little of Proserpina's beauty.

François Louis Godon was Machinist and Watchmaker to Charles III and Charles IV. The royal collections and, especially, the Royal Palace of Madrid, keep about 25 clocks of extraordinary workmanship made by Godon. This Louis XVI period example has all the elements that characterize Godon's work. A main figure in white marble representing the "reading" and expressing in its delicate lines the quality of the sculpture. The lower part has a frontal with angels and other deities painted on the marble frieze. Perhaps the highlight of this clock is its dial, exquisitely and unsurpassed enameled and signed by the master Coteau (the most important enamel of the time). Here are the hours in Roman numerals, the minutes in Arabic numerals and on the outer rim the days of the month. Wonderful period hands and fantastic movement in keeping with the quality of the rest of the pendulum. Similar works to these are referenced in the "Catálogo de Relojes del Patrimonio Nacional", 1987.