Empire gilt bronze "Wheel of Fortune" or lottery clock

The Wheel of Fortune
Paris, circa 1810.
Rare and elegant Empire period clock,
Representing an Amur, standing on a pedestal, brandishing a phylactery bearing the number ''80''.
Skeleton" movement inscribed in the center of a wheel of fortune,
The spokes are formed by a torch, a quiver and two crossed bows, with gilded bronze "Fleur de lys" hands.
To the right, a cornucopia pours out golden Louis.
Front chased with a decoration depicting a fortune-telling scene.
Base with rounded sides adorned with applied friezes, supported by small acorn feet.
Entirely in finely chased and gilded bronze, the character and decorations are of superb quality.
Magnificent brilliance of the original mercury gilding, with a subtle interplay of matte and gloss.
Enameled ring dial with Roman numerals, signed GROGNOT in Paris (slight crazing).
GROGNOT. Paris. Rue des Fontaines du Temple, 1810. Place du Palais-Royal,
1812. Pendulier. (Tardy, Dictionnaire des horlogers français, Paris, 1971, p.74).
Movement with silk thread suspension, in perfect working order.
Sounds the hours and half-hours. Pendulum, gong and key supplied.
Height: 40 cm x W: 31 x D: 13 cm

In the particular field of French watchmaking, the early years of the 19th century were a period of exceptional creativity, with the invention and interpretation of numerous models, some of them exceedingly rare. Such is the case of the clock we offer, whose theme is a particularly free interpretation of fortune and the hazards of life. Indeed, a young winged love proudly brandishes the winning ticket numbered 90; while on the other side of the dial, symbolizing a lottery wheel, a horn pours out a stream of coins, a variation on the horn-of-abundance models produced in the second half of the 18th century.

Another clock of identical design is illustrated in P. Kjellberg, Encyclopédie de la pendule française du Moyen Age au XXe siècle, Paris, 1997, p.445, fig. F; purchased at a Paris auction, it now belongs to the collections of the Musée François Duesberg in Mons (reproduced in Musée François Duesberg, Arts décoratifs 1775-1825, Brussels, 2004, p.39).

Ref: A7R487YMDB