Posts Tagged ‘movement’

CLOCKS, WATCHES AND BAROMETERS Bracket Clocks
Repeater clock by Edwardus East with signed and engraved
backplatc in cboniscd case 600 0
A three-train musical clock by Moore of Ipswich with eight tunes in ebony case with gilt metal mounts in mid-eightccnth-century style, 2 ft 2 in high 440 0
George III fruitwood clock by Recordon, late Emery, London, with painted dial and frets at side and front of case, 1 ft 2 in high 290 0
George III walnut clock, the dial signed Joseph Smith, Chester,
and of pronounced Continental character, 1 ft 6 in high 210 0
George III ebonised clock, the 7-in dial signed William Smith, with calendar and strike/silent dial. The movement is contained in an inverted bell-topped case, 1 ft 4 in high 190 0
Louis XV contra-boullc clock with enamel dial signed Darmezin, Paris, and movement signed Crepaux, Paris, in cartouche-shaped case, 3 ft 1 in high 190 0
Louis XV Boulle clock by Pcrrache, Paris, with an enamelled dial, the case surmounted by a youthful figure of Jove, richly mounted in ormolu, 2 ft 6 in high 170 0
George III mahogany clock by Massey, Bridge Road, Lambeth, the circular white-painted dial with a central calendar hand, 1 ft 4 in high 140 0
George III mahogany clock, the 7-in circular dial signed Lamb and Webb, London, with calendar and engraved backplate in bell-top case, 1 ft 4 in high 120 0
Mid-eighteenth-century veneered ebony clock signed John Small-wood, Lichfield, with pull quarter repeat, 1 ft 4 in high (later dial) 85 0
George III mahogany clock, the 8-in arched silvered dial signed Gravell and Tolkien, London, with engraved backplate and tic-tac escapement in broken arch-topped case, 1 ft 6 in high 60 0
Regency rosewood clock signed on dial John P. Smith, 1 ft 3 in
high 20 0
Carriage Clocks
Clock in gilt case by James McCabe, London 675 0
Repeating French brass clock with white dial signed Gibson
and Co Ltd, Belfast, 6J in high 68 0
French brass clock with white dial signed Rowel, Oxford, 4Ј in high
Repeating brass clock with white dial and glazed brass case, 5 in high
Gilt metal timepiece, the glazed case with pierced floral frets at the sides and front, 5 in high and with travelling case
Miniature silver-cased repeating clock with white dial. The case stamped J. Keller, 3J in high
Lantern Clocks
Brass clock with engraved copper dial and an alarm disk, 1 ft 1 in high
Late seventeenth-century brass clock, the dial engraved with flowers and with pierced dolphin cresting, 1 ft 3 in high
Longcase Clocks
Late seventeenth-century marquetry clock, the 11-in dial signed Robt. Williamson, London, with calendar aperture in a walnut case inlaid with shaped panels of birds and flowers, with a bullseye in the waist door and with spirally turned columns at the corners, 6 ft 7 in high (frieze of a later date)
Tall mahogany cased clock with chimes. The elaborately foliated brass dial with a silvered chaptered ring. The case inlaid with classic urns in coloured woods, the arched hood has brass spires and the waist has a bevelled glass door
A carved mahogany cased clock with a grotesque satyr mask to the hood over a brass floral scrolled dial. Westminster, Whittington and St Michael chimes, 7 ft 7 in
Mahogany clock made by Manley of Chatham
Eighteenth-century walnut clock with domed canopy and brass face, the movement by William Stapleton, London, 7 ft 4 in high
Walnut clock, the early eighteenth-century movement signed
Andr. Dunlop, London, the 12-in dial with chestnut and
flower spandrels, 7 ft 4 in high Georgian lacquer clock with brass face and striking movement.
The case, with ‘bullseye’ door, decorated with gilt chinoiseries
on a simulated tortoiseshell ground Eighteenth-century small clock by John Lee, Gookham; with
brass dial and foliated spandrels, in a black lacquer case
decorated with chinoiseries in red and gill
Mantel Clocks
An ormolu clock, the painted dial signed F. Linke, Paris, the movement in a glazed case in well chiselled ormolu with drapery, acanthus leaves and groups of fruit and ending in double cloven-hoof feet, 2 ft 11 in high
Bronze and ormolu mounted clock, the movement contained in a drum upon which is seated a Chinaman holding a parasol, the whole on the back of an elephant, 1 ft 4 in high
A French clock, inscribed Bonniere a Clermont, in a rococo porcelain case. The blue and gilt ground painted with musicians, lovers and flowers. On a similar stand
Louis XVI marble and ormolu clock, the striking movement with enamel dial signed Hessen. The arched architectural case with drapery festoon, pineapple finials, an urn and fluted columns, 1 ft 5 in high 110 0
Regency rosewood clock, the movement by Dwerrihouse &
Carter, Davies Street, 2 ft high 70 0
Philippe clock with glass panels in gilt metal case with corinthian columns and surmounted by an urn. Decorated with coloured enamels, 18 in 68 0
An Empire marble clock mounted in ormolu, the movement with outside count-wheel, the dial surmounted by a white marble urn and suspended between fluted columns capped by ormolu pineapples, 1 ft 4 in high 55 0
Watches
Gentleman’s 18-carat gold half-hunter watch 20 0
Early nineteenth-century verge watch by D. Nevern, in a tor-
toiseshell case, the dial enamelled with a wharf-side scene 13 0
Gentlemen’s 18-carat gold pocket watch by George Harvey,
Wellington 13 0
George III verge watch by William Fowler, London, in a silver
case, London 1783 9 0
Nineteenth-century verge watch by Nicoll, Great Portland
Street, in a tortoiscshcll case 7 10
Barometers
Early   Victorian   mahogany  stick   barometer  by  E. Davis,
Shrewsbury, 3 ft 3 in high 70 0
Regency rosewood inlaid with mother-o’-pearl banjo barometer
and thermometer 46 0
George III mahogany banjo barometer and thermometer with engraved scales by A. M. Ortelli, Godalming, the case outlined with fruitwood lines, 3 ft 2 in high 38 0
Georgian mahogany stick barometer and thermometer by Rout-ledge, Carlisle 38 0
Mahogany stick barometer and thermometer by Salmon, Bath 38 0
A Regency rosewood banjo barometer and thermometer by
Aprile Sudbury 34 0
Early nineteenth-century mahogany banjo barometer by Lione and Tarone, London, with a thermometer and the case inlaid with Prince of Wales plumes and a whorl pattern, 3 ft 2 in high 30 0
Early nineteenth-century mahogany banjo barometer by A.
Celti, Reading, the case inlaid with shells, 3 ft 2 in high 22 0
SILVER
(Troy weight: 20 pennyweights [dwt] = 1 ounce [oz])
Baskets for Bread, Cakes, Fruit, Sugar or Sweetmeats George II oval-shaped cake basket on four cherub mask and scroll feet. The sides pierced and engraved with flowers and
scrolls and the base engraved with a coat-of-arms, by Paul
Crespin, 1753, 62 oz 3,600 0
George III oval pedestal cake basket by John Ernes, London,
1804, 24 oz 10 dwt 400 0
George III boat-shaped pedestal sugar basket with engraved border, reeded edge and swivel handle by Peter, Ann and William Bateman, London, 1793, 5 oz 10 dwt 320 0
Victorian oval basket, the pierced panels embossed with beading
and garlands, London, 1895, 19 oz 62 0
Candelabra and Candlesticks
Pair of George I dwarf table candlesticks, the baluster shafts upon square terraced bases by William Darkeratt, 4J in high, London, 1726, 20 oz 1,500 0
Victorian tabic candelabra with two tiers of six scrolled branches issuing from a bold Corinthian column supported on a square terraced foot, with neo-classic rams’ mask and husk swags by R.H. over R.H., London, 1877, 30 in high 355 0
Pair of George III table candlesticks, the tapering baluster shafts upon half-fluted circular bases by John Green & Co, Sheffield, 1800 195 0
George III chamber candlestick and snuffer, the gadrooned edge
witli shell motif by William Cafe, London, 1761, 12 oz 130 0
Casters
Garniture of three George II vase-shaped sugar casters of plain
design by John Delmester, London, 1758, 15 oz 10 dwt 930 0
William IV Scottish baluster caster engraved with a crest above floral decoration on a granulated ground, by Elder & Co, Edinburgh, 1832, 4 oz 7 dwt 90 0
George III baluster caster with pierced cover and wrythen
finial, by Thomas Satchwell, 1780, 2 oz 4 dwt 85 0
George III vase-shaped caster the otherwise plain body engraved with contemporary crest. The mark of George Giles struck over another, 1783, 2 oz 8 dwt 65 0
Coasters—Wine
Set of four partly fluted circular coasters with gadrooned rims and engraved with crests by John & Thomas Settle, Sheffield, 1818 410 0
Pair of George III coasters with pierced waved galleries, London, 1794 270 0
Pair of William IV circular-shaped wine coasters with foliate borders and crested silver bosses to the wood base, by Henry Wilkinson & Co, Sheffield, 1831 150 0
Pair of George III coasters with beaded rims, the pierced sides stamped with arcading, urns and laurel festoons, maker’s mark missing, 1794 100 0
Coffee Pots
George I small plain cylindrical coffee pot with octagonal spout and low domed cover with baluster finial, by Paul De Lamcrie, London, 1725, 11 oz 3 dwt 1,900 0
George II baluster coffee pot, plain with foliate decorated spout, wood handle and hinged domed lid, probable maker Fuller White, London, 1759, 21 oz 1,350 0
Late George III tapering cylindrical coffee pot, the plain body engraved with contemporary armorials and a crest, by Peter, Ann and William Bateman, London, 1802, 35 ox 2 dwt 1,200 0
George IV coffee pot, vase-shaped, with moulded bands at the neck and waist, leaf-capped scroll handle and foliate finial on lid, by Pearce & Burrowes, London, 1826, 22 oz 5 dwt 210 0
Victorian vase-shaped coffee pot engraved with key pattern
decoration, London, 1872, 24 oz 135 0
Cruets
George II five-bottle cruet frame on four shell feet with detachable baluster handle. Five cut-glass silver-mounted bottles. By Jabez Daniel, 1750, 28 oz 7 dwt 105 0
George III cruet frame for six bottles with reeded loop end handles, ring holders, on four feet. Five glass bottles all chipped, one broken. By Henry Chawner, London, 1792 16 0
Cups and Goblets
Elizabeth I secular wine goblet, the bowl decorated with tulips and strapwork motifs, on a slender baluster stem and circular fluted foot, London, 1593, 5 oz 10 dwt 2,000 0
Pair of George III goblets of plain design, probably by William
Sumner, London, 1800, 20 oz 520 0
Pair of George III two-handled pedestal challenge cups and covers with reeded decoration and urn knops, by Samuel Hcnnell, London, 1806, 32 oz 5 dwt 400 0
George III tumbler cup engraved with armorials, gilt interior and the base with contemporary initials. Possibly by John Garter, London, 1766, 2 oz 1 dwt 150 0
Victorian wine cup, the beaker-shaped bowl and pedestal base cast and chased in low relief with grape-laden vine tendrils, by Hunt and Roskell, London, 1875, 10 oz 1 dwt 52 0
Cutlery—Canteens
George III fiddle thread pattern table silver: 24 tablespoons, 36 table forks, 12 dessert spoons, 12 dessert forks, 12 teaspoons, 6 sauce ladles, 2 soup ladles, 1 marrow scoop, majority by Richard Crossley, 1798/1800/1804, 146 oz 9 dwt 750 0
Victorian fiddle pattern table silver: 12 tablespoons, 12 table forks, 12 dessert spoons, 12 dessert forks, 6 teaspoons, 2 salt spoons, by George Angell, London, 1863, 116 oz 14 dwt 260 0
Cutlery—Forks Dessert
Twelve George I  three-pronged  forks with crest, different
makers, 1718, 14 oz 1 dwt 1,500 0
Twelve George IV fiddle pattern forks by James Scott, Dublin,
1822, 15 oz 75 0
Six George III fiddle pattern forks by G.D., London, 1794,
8 oz 14 dwt 65 0
SOME AUCTION ROOM PRICES ! 1968-69
Cutlery—Forks Table
Twelve Queen Anne three-pronged forks engraved with a crest,
by David King, Dublin, 1708/10, 28 oz Four George II three-pronged forks engraved with two crests,
1755, 7 oz 18 dwt Eleven Victorian fiddle shell pattern forks by George Angell,
1857/61, 36 oz 16 dwt
Cutlery—Forks Toasting
George III fork with knopped shaft and scrolled handle, probably by R. Preston, London, circa 1767, 7 oz 10 dwt. 17f in long
George III fork with knopped shaft and scrolled handle by John Deacon, London, circa 1775, 8 oz. 19i in long
Cutlery—Knives
Forty-eight Victorian table knives and twenty-four dessert knives, kings pattern, steel blades by J.A. or T.S., 1884
Twelve eighteenth-century dessert knives, the multi-faceted bloodstone handles with knopped urn finials and mounts engraved, the scimitar blades of steel. Circa 1700, (Some handles cracked)
Cutlery—Ladles
Four George III sauce ladles, crested Old English pattern by
Hester Bateman, 1783, 5 oz 19 dwt Pair of George III sauce ladles with ribbed and punched beaded
bowls, by Michael Keating, Dublin, circa 1780, 2 oz 16 dwt
Cutlery—Spoons Dessert
Nine engraved spoons, seven by William Soame, 1741, two 1748, 12 oz
Ten Hanoverian spoons engraved with crest, 1760, 11 oz 5 dwt Cutlery—Spoons Serving
Pair of George III Old English pattern spoons by Steven Adams,
London, 1772, 5 oz 15 dwt Pair of Victorian spoons by George Angell, 1854, 10 oz 14 dwt
Cutlery—Spoons Table
Six George I Hanoverian pattern spoons with rat-tail bowls
by Charles Jackson, 1723, 11 oz 2 dwt Six George III Old English pattern spoons with contemporary
initials J.G. by Hester Bateman, 1780, 11 oz 17 dwt
Cutlery—Spoons Tea and Coffee
Six William IV ‘bright-cut’ spoons, 1836, 3 oz 7 dwt Eight George IV fiddle shell pattern spoons by J. McKay, Edinburgh, 1827, 4 oz 8 dwt

BOWL IN DARK RED GLASS, ENAMELLED AND GILT
Byzantine, i ith-t2th century A.D.Ht. 79 mm (3*13 in.)
Theophilus, describing ‘how the Greeks
embellish with Gold and Silver’, said ‘they
take the white, red and green glass, whicb
are used for enamels, and carefully grind
each one separately with water on a
porphyry stone. With them they paint
small flowers and scrolls . . .’. He went on
to describe the furnace in which they fired
window glass, including painted glass, and
specified that the glass be bedded down on
quick-lime. Vasari, who wrote an account
of the stained glass technique of Gugliel-
imo de Marcillat (d.1529) stressed that
‘this burning in of the colours requires the
greatest caution, for if the heat be too great
it will cause the glass to crack, and if
insufficient it will not fix the colours’. To
test the enamel, Theophilus suggested
that you should ’see if you can scratch off
the colour with your nail’. Glasses of the
type described by Theophilus are known,
dating from the 1 ith to the 12th centuries;
one of them is illustrated.
VASE WITH ENAMELLING AND GILDING
Syria, Ј.1320-30 A.D. Ht. 302 mm (11 88 in.)
(See also colour photograph 11)
Not until the 13th and 14th centuries was
the next high point in the history of
enamelling reached, with the great Islamic
mosque lamps and other vessels produced
in the near East, particularly in Syria.
Besides the weli-known lamps which
adorned Moslem holy places, the Syrian
enamellers decorated such objects as
footed bowls, sprinklers, globes, beakers
and long-necked bottles. The vase illus-
trated is decorated with golden arabesques
and fish motifs finely outlined in red. The
inscription round the widest point of the
vessel repeats the words ‘The Wise’
(referring to the God of Mohammed). The
medallions around the neck of the vase
probably contain the armorial symbol of
the nobleman who commissioned the
object. The glass itself is not clear and
colourless, for most of the Islamic glass of
that time is of a brownish or greenish tint,
often clouded with bubbles.
Adding: The Skill of the Decorator
In Islam the art of enamelling came to
maturity from the 13th century, the finest
work being done in Syria. The lamps in
Egyptian mosques exported from Syria
are the most famous examples of all the
Islamic enamelled glass. Strictly speaking,
these objects are lamp-holders or lanterns
rather than lamps, for they enclosed an
oil-vessel which provided the illumination.
They were suspended from the roof of the
mosque by chains which, when the roof
was high, passed through a glass globe or
ball, from where the chains radiated to the
handles of the lamp. Enamelled glass was
used for these lamps, not only for its
obvious decorative effect, but because the
Koran said, ‘God is the light of the
Heavens and the Earth: His light is as a
niche in which is a lamp, the lamp in a
glass, the glass as it were a glittering star’.
Many reproductions of mosque lamps
were made at the end of the 19th century.
Unfortunately, like the Romans, the Is-
lamic glass-making artists left no written
record of the craft which they practised
with such very great skill. It is not until
the 15th century that a contemporary
record of enamelling techniques is found,
but from that time, especially with the
advent of printing, there is no lack of
written evidence. Enamelling on glass was
a speciality of the Venetian glass-makers,
a technique which they developed during
the 15th century, probably reaching tech-
nical maturity by the middle of the
century. In all essentials their enamelling
technique was similar to that of the
Islamic artists, yet it would appear that the
Venetians independently re-invented en-
amelling on glass—possibly borrowing the
idea from the Italian worker in metal. By-
tradition the invention has been ascribed
to the glass-maker Angelo Baroviero.
Throughout the 15th century the coloured
glass the Venetians had invented—blue,
green, white, purple and turquoise—was
richly enamelled and gilded.
GOBLET IN  COLOURED GLASS
ENAMELLED DECORATION
Venice. Italy, late 15th 10 early 16th century
By the beginning of the 16th century the
fashion in Venice for coloured glass had
given way to a desire for clear colourless
glass. Enamelling, along with other forms
of decoration, was usually found on clear
glass specimens from this time, although
the clear metal was far less suited to the
technique. The pictorial work which had
been used so much on coloured glass soon
disappeared, and enamelling was restricted
to a few simple motifs. A favourite of these
was a form of scale pattern in bead-like
dots of enamelling and light gilding,
through which lines were scratched, al-
though simple bands of coloured dots were
sometimes the sole decoration of the piece.
Another familiar motif of the late 15th-
and early 16th-century glasses resembled
a lily-of-the-vallcy or a small fruit with a
calyx attached, as on the goblet illustrated.
This goblet also helps to show how the
Venetians combined their coloured and
clear glass in one vessel.
Although representational painting was no
longer the fashion by the beginning of the
16th century, a transitional phase is
represented by a series of glasses enamelled
with grotesque ornamentation built up
from patterns of flowers, leaves, animal
and human-like forms. Armorial glasses
were probably among the latest Venetian
work in the technique of enamelling. A
shield of arms or an emblem would be
added to the few simple decorative motifs
that were now in use on clear colourless
glass, and at their best, these were very
well drawn, as in the dish illustrated.
However, in some cases there is reason to
suspect that the shields were later addi-
tions. Venetian taste, now inclining to-
wards the new, clear colourless metal,
began to appreciate glass for its own sake
and to be interested more in its quality and
beauty of shape than in its added decora-
tion. By the middle of the 16th century the
technique of enamelling, apart from wares
made for export, had virtually passed out
of fashion in Italy.
beaker with enamelled decoration
Made in Venice for the German market, 1603
Ht. 267 mm (105 in.)
Reuhsadlerhumpen, pale green glass with
enamelled decoration
Bohemia, 1654. Ht. 200 mm (11-4 in.)
Although enamelling became unfashion-
able in Italy, it remained a favourite form
of decoration in Germany until the second
half of the 18th century. The earliest
enamelled glasses thai might have a claim
to being German are some cylindrical
beakers commonly bearing German arms,
but it is now thought that these were
ordered from Venice by German buyers.
The beaker illustrated, inscribed ‘Roccho
Grasl’, is a typical late example of the type.
The most productive enamelling work-
shops in the late 16th and early 17th
centuries were situated in Bohemia,
whence the craft was carried to Germany
by emigrant workmen. German enamel-
ling, with its bold colours, has the attrac-
tiveness of a peasant art, but the enamels
used were not of fine quality nor were the
drawings of any distinction. The glass
itself was relatively poor, and only a few
shapes were attempted: the tall Stangen-
glas, the cylindrical Humpen, jugs, beakers,
and screw-topped spirit flasks.
The subjects used by the German enam-
ellers for the most part belong to peasant
art. Gonventional portraits, simplified
landscapes, scenes of artisans at work,
guild processions, satirical subjects, alle-
gories and inscriptions, usually illiterate
and sometimes obscene, are common.
Biblical subjects, the Emperor and the
Seven Electors and the Reichsadler are also
depicted on these glasses. The Reichsadler
is the Imperial double-eagle, bearing on
its wings the arms with names of a fanciful
hierarchy of the Holy Roman Empire; the
arms are arranged in groups of four in the
so-called Quaternion system derived from
Schedel’s Wellkronik of 1483. They begin
with those of Rome and the three spiritual
Electors (Treves, Cologne, Mayence),
balanced by the four temporal ones
(Bavaria, Brandenburg, Saxony, Palatin-
ate), ending with four ‘Dorffer’ and four
‘Birg’. The Reichsadlerhumpen may have
had some contemporary significance, since
they originated during the strife of the
Thirty Years’ War. The Retchsadler and
the ‘Elector’ glasses remained popular for
a long period.
Adding: The Skill of the Decorator
In the guild regulations of the glass-
makers of Krcibitz in Bohemia (1669) one
of the tasks set the aspiring craftsman was
to ‘prepare with colours an Imperial
Eagle, with all its members, in one and a
half days’. This referred to the Reich-
sadlerhumpen, which most likely had to be
fired more than once, those enamels which
required a higher temperature being fired
before the ones which fluxed at a lower
heat In all essentials the contemporary
descriptions of enamelling agree with each
other, the cakes or beads of enamel being
pounded on marble or porphyry, [he
powder thus resulting being washed and
applied to the already annealed glass vessel
and the glass being carefully reheated so
that the enamels fused to it successfully. It
would seem that enamelled vessel-glass
began to be fired in special ‘muffle kilns’
rather than in the glass furnace itself by
the end of the 17th century. As in ordinary
coloured glass, metal oxides were used to
give the enamels their various colours.
‘SchwarzloT, or black enamelling on glass
was a Dutch invention originally used lor
the decoration of windows; it spread into
Northern Germany, and was developed b\
Johann Schaper in the third quarter ol the
17th century. Schaper was born at Ham-
burg in 1621, was at Nuremberg from
1655, at Ratisbon in 1664 and died in 1670.
Originally a painter of stained window-
glass, he was the first of the South German
llausmaler or independent artists, obtain-
ing undecorated glass and pottery and
decorating it to Ins own invention. I le used
copper oxide mixed with black enamel
pigment, painting this on to the glass ahd
then scratching his design through it with
a needle in the manner of the stained-glass
painter. He painted mainly in black, with
slight touches of red and gold. In the
beaker illustrated he used for inspiration
an engraving of a gypsy procession by
Jacques Callot (1592-1635; Callot’s work,
depicting scenes of Italian life with fan-
tastic caricature, was very popular in the
17th and 18th centuries).
Adding: The Skill of the Decorator
Johann Schaper gained some followers,
one of whom, like himself, was a window-
glass painter. This was Johann Ludwig
Paber, who also painted faience. Herman
Benckcrtt of Frankfort-on-Main was an-
other of Schapers known followers. The
Humpen illustrated is a remarkably fine
example of the Schwarzlot technique,
probably the work of one of Schaper’s
imitators. The scene shows a man being
pushed into a pigsty by a laughing and
gesticulating crowd—presumably for
drunkenness, for the Latin inscription on
the reverse is a diatribe against drinking.
After 1700 the Schwarzlot technique was
carried on in Bohemia and Silesia by
independent decorators. Though they
were using the same medium, in style and
subject their work was very different.
They concentrated on landscapes, hunting
scenes, warriors and scenes from peasant
life, then replaced these by scroll-and-
strap-work, Chinese figures, putti and
fantastic animals.
In Spain a distinct style of enamelling
glass emerged in the late 15th, 16th and
early 17th centuries. It originated in
Barcelona, where glass-makers were in
considerable rivalry with Venice towards
the end of the 15th century. The most
important product of the Barcelona crafts-
men was their enamelled ware, which
surprisingly showed a complete inde-
pendence of Venetian models. The colours
they used for their enamels were notably a
light yellowish-green, in combination with
yellow, white and lavender blue, and
occasionally they used touches of black,
red and brown. Their style of enamelling
has been described as primitive, but also
as powerful in design. The motifs they
used were Near-Eastern in feeling, such as
stylised trees, arabesque foliage, running
animals and pairs of birds. Occasionally,
figures in 16th-century European costume
were used. The vase illustrated was a
favourite shape, showing a typical motif
resembling a small fruit with calyx attached
which was also found on Venetian glass.
Enamelled decoration on glass, though
familiar on the Continent from the 15th
century onwards, was apparently never
attempted in England until the middle of
the 18th century. Two types of enamelling
emerged in the third quarter of the 18th
century, one practised by the Beilby
family of Newcastle-on-Tyne, and the
other practised on the opaque white glass
of the period (see Opaque White Glass).
William Beilby (1740-1819) and his sister
Mary (1749-97) were recorded by Thomas
Bewick, the wood-engraver, to have ‘had
constant employment of enamel-painting
of glass’. William had learned the art of
enamelling in Birmingham, and proceeded
to enamel glasses from about 1762. At
what point Mary joined him in his work is
not known, for their glasses are signed
simply ‘Beilby’. Their brother Ralph
Beilby (1743—1817), to whom Thomas
Bewick was apprenticed, may have had
some influence on their work through his
knowledge of heraldic engraving.
The first Beilby enamelled work was of an
heraldic nature, in both white and coloured
enamel on glasses or goblets with ogee or
bucket-shaped bowls. The Beilbys’ style
changed about 1774, and subjects such as
scenes of hunting, fishing and shooting,
pastoral scenes including ruins, and Chin-
ese subjects appeared, the shapes of the
glasses becoming more diverse. Colours
were not always used on these glasses, and
the subjects were often rendered in white
monochrome, sometimes with a faint tint
of blue or pink. Occasionally they followed
the motifs found on engraved glasses of the
period, such as hops, barley and the flower-
ing vine. Beilby glasses more often than
not have an opaque white enamel-twist
stem. Thomas Bewick became attached to
Mary Beilby, who unfortunately in her
early twenties suffered a paralytic stroke.
The brother and sister left Newcastle-on-
Tyne after the death of their mother in
1778, and went to Fife in Scotland, where
apparently they did not continue their
work.
Hi. 105 mm (4-15 in.)
BEAKER WITH CUTTING, GILDING AND
ENAMEL PAINTING
By Anton kothgasser, Vienna, Austria, r.1825
Hi. 115 mm (4-5 in.)
Many drinking and souvenir glasses with
translucent enamelling still exist which
were decorated by Samuel Mohn (horn
1762 in Weissenfels, died 1815 in Dresden)
and his son, Gottlob Samuel Mohn (born
1789 in Weissenfels and died 1825 in
Vienna). Their chief technical innovation
was the preparation of transparent enam-
els, in contrast with the heavy opaque
enamels used particularly in the 16th and
17th centuries. Samuel Mohn had pre-
viously been a painter of silhouettes on
porcelain. His son, who secured the
patronage of the Emperor, painted sil-
houettes on glass tumblers, as well as views
and allegorical figure-subjects. The Mohns
were among the first to cater for the market
for mementoes caused by the revival of
travel for its own sake, after the finish of
the Napoleonic wars. They worked on a
large scale, helped by apprentices, and
using transfer printing for outlines to
speed up the process, but the delicacy of
their paintings, usually on glasses in the
Ranfthecher form, makes these a worthy
item for collectors.
The Mohns’ discovery of transparent
enamels was further improved by a Vien-
nese porcelain and glass decorator, Anton
Kothgasser (1769-1851). He was a painter
from the Imperial Porcelain Factory, who
started working on stained glass with
Gottlob Mohn. He managed to make his
colours more brilliant than the Mohns’,
and made full use of yellow stain, or the
stain made from a compound of silver, as
used on stained glass windows. His glasses
are usually waistcd, with a heavy cut base
and sometimes lavishly gilt, as in the one
illustrated. Views of towns, portraits,
genre scenes and flowers, sometimes
copied, are featured in his work. His
glasses have been described as the finest
examples of the Viennese Biedermewr
style. Kothgasser and the Mohns had
many pupils and many imitators. In the-
same movement was Franz Anton Siebel
(1777-1842) of Lichtenfels in Upper
Franconia.
PERFUME BOTTLE IN COLOURLESS GLASS,
ENAMELLED AND GILT
Emile Galle, France, dated 1880
I li 157 mm (613 in.)
‘CROWN MILANO’ EWER WITH ROPE HANDLE
Ml. Washington Glass Company, U.S.A.
Ht. 254 mm (10 in.)
Emile Galle (1846 1904) the great French
glass-maker, is less well-known for his
enamelled work than for his work in the
field of cameo glass. Yet he was an expert
in the art of enamelling, and showed this
gift in his first major exhibition in Paris in
1878. It was there that he established his
reputation as an inventive and original
glass artist, using—among other tech-
niques—enamelled decoration on triple-
cased glass with gold leaf insertions. At the
exhibition in Paris in 1884 he showed
examples of clear colourless glass decorated
with enamelling, cutting and engraving.
At the 1889 Exhibition in Paris he showed
his finest works. His colours had taken on
a new softness, and a fresh note of lyricism
could be sensed in his work. The decisive
factor in his work seems to have been
Japanese art, and after 1889 he developed
to maturity the ‘nature-style’ that was to
epitomise his thoughts and ideas and was
to bring him his greatest fame. The
singular lyricism ol his work can be seen in
the enamelled perfume bottle illustrated.
An elegant painted and enamelled glass-
ware was produced by the Mt. Washington
Glass Company, New Bedford, Mass.,
towards the end of the 19th century. It was
first called ‘Albertine’, though a ware that
was the same in texture, shape and
decoration was advertised more cxotically
as ‘Crown Milano’ in about 1890. Unless
the perishable paper label survives, ‘Al-
bertine’ cannot be differentiated from
unmarked ‘Crown Milano’. Frederick S.
Shirley and Albert Steffin of that firm were
issued with a patent in 1886 for a means of
decorating an opal glassware. The articles,
which had a convex ribbed body, were
treated as follows: a perforated corrugated
stencil was laid against them; pulverised
carbon was dusted against this, which left
a design for the enameller to follow when
the stencil was taken away, so that there
was no distortion in the finished product.
When ‘Crown Milano’ was made, a blank
in white opal glass was shaped by free-
blowing, moulding or press-moulding.

CLOCK CASES
Up to the present we have not dealt with clocks, for the good reason that nothing in the way of a clock case was made before the second half of the seventeenth century. Earlier clocks were of what is known as the lantern type, consisting of a brass framework with turned corner pillars and a round dial fixed at the front. Of the movements of clocks there is no space to deal in this book. It would require a book in itself to explain the various kinds and the phases through which the mechanism passed. Suffice it to say that the early type were fitted with the verge movement in which he teeth of a rotating crown wheel engaged the pallets of a balance arbor. The pendulum came into use soon after the middle of the seventeenth century.
A lantern clock is shown in Fig. 89. It was intended to stand on a bracket, the power being supplied by a weight suspended by a chain. A single hour hand was fitted, pointing to numerals engraved on either a brass or silvered dial. A striking mechanism was usually fitted, the bell being mounted upon curved metal bars as in the present example. Just below it a fretted brass pediment was fitted, this being generally of the dolphin device and engraved as shown. At the corners turned brass finials were fitted.
Bracket Clocks.—During the second half of the seventeenth century wooden bracket clock cases became popular, and these were generally of the form shown in Fig. go. They were roughly square in shape and a ” basket ” top was fitted to provide interior space for the bell. Various kinds were made, some being of walnut, cross-grained as in the general run of contemporary furniture, others were veneered with tortoiseshell, elaborate marquetry (this form of decoration is dealt with later), and some were in ebony. In some the basket top was of brass fretted and engraved, the better to allow the sound of the bell to emerge. In most the cases were glazed on all four sides to allow the mechanism to be seen.
Later, during the first half of the eighteenth century, the
bell-top ” clock was introduced, the name arising out of the formation of the top. One example is given in Fig. 91. In this the square front has been heightened and the top of the door is rounded to give space to the small dial which records either the date or enables the clock to be set either to ” strike ” or ” silent.” It should be noted that no bracket clocks of this type were fitted with a seconds hand because a movement of this kind needs a far longer pendulum than could be accommodated in a small case. The fourth clock on p. H3 belongs to an altogether later period, the second half of the eighteenth century, but it is given here so that easy comparison of the styles can be made.
Grandfather Clocks.—Speaking of the long pendulum brings us to the grandfather case introduced during the reign of Charles II. The details in them were similar to those in the furniture of the time, though there was something characteristic in their treatment which seems to belong peculiarly to clock cases. They were mostly of veneered walnut and occasionally ebony, and the hoods were made to slide either forwards or upwards, usually the former. They were generally flat at the top, as in the example in Fig. 88, and twist columns were fitted at the corners, these opening with the door. In many specimens a piece of bottle glass was introduced in the large door in the waist to enable the movement of the pendulum to be seen. This was fitted in either a round or oval frame.
Frets were often introduced in the frieze, these being backed with silk, and the mouldings were of a delicate type, far finer than those usually used in furniture. The workmanship was invariably of a high quality, and this, coupled with the characteristic details, suggests that it became customary for some men to specialise in case making as distinct from the ordinary cabinet making. The late seventeenth century examples were usually veneered with marquetry, whilst the Queen Anne specimens were of plain walnut, decorated with cross-bandings and herring-bone bandings.

ART NOUVEAU BELGIAN FURNITURE: LADY’S BUREAU, MAHOGANY AND MIXED-WOOD TABLE, MAHOGANY SCREEN, WALNUT TABLE, COIFFEUSE.

IN LATE 19TH-CENTURY Europe, Art
Nouveau reached its creative peak in Belgium. Its success there was largely due to the fact that people were encouraged to explore fresh, exciting ways of looking at the arts.
The same, spirited Art Nouveau message that called fora cohesive, unified interior — so successfully accomplished elsewhere in Europe —took root in Belgium in the work of a number of innovative artist-architects, such as Victor Hotta, Henry van de Velde, and Gustave Serrurier-Bovy
The Belgian version of Art Nouveau had much in common with its French counterpart. Both embraced free-flowing, sinuous, sculptural furniture, and had a rich vocabulary of decorative motifs in organic shapes — plants, Hower blossoms, trees, butterflies, and insects — all drawn from the natural world.
HENRY VAN DE VELDE
Henry van de Velde won universal acclaim for the design of his own home near Brussels — Bloemenwerf —where furniture, carpets, and wall coverings combined to create a harmonious whole. He forged strong links with France by showcasing and selling his furniture at prestigious retail shops in Paris, including Siegfried Bing’s FArt Nouveau and La Maison Modern owned by Julius Meier-Graefe. Widely celebrated
throughout Europe, van de Velde was influenced by the writings of William Morris and believed that art should always follow organic form — a theory that underlined his furniture designs. Echoing nature’s subtle curves and lines, they were rendered in light-coloured, native timbers such as walnut, beech, and oak, and had minimal decoration. Despite van de Velde’s theories, function was key to his sturdy yet elegantly simple cabinets, tables, and writing desks.
VICTOR HORTA
Another Belgian pioneer of the Art Nouveau style was the architect and designer, Victor Hotta, who designed spectacular buildings such as the
splendid Hotel Tassel in Brussels. His interiors coalesced into harmonious and integrated ensembles: from wall panelling, ceilings, and door frames to furniture and metalwork fixtures, using an exciting range of new
materials, such as iron and glass.
The cross-fertilization between French and Belgian Art Nouveau resulted in Horta’s energetic, curving style — with its signature whiplash curves — influencing Parisian designers such as Hector Guimard. His expensive furniture was skilfully crafted in luxurious timbers such as maple, mahogany, and fruitwoods, and lavishly upholstered in fabrics such as velvet and silk.

GUSTAVE SERRURIER-BOVY
Like van de Velde and Horta, Gustave Serrurier-Bovy adopted many familiar Art Nouveau decorative motifs to complement his furniture, including plants and flowers, sinuous curves, and high-wrought mounts of pewter or brass. Determined to produce well-designed furniture for everyone, Serrurier-Bovy was also inspired by the English Arts and Crafts Movement, as seen in his robust, rectilinear furniture and in his preference for oak.
The influence of these highly original Belgian designers reached beyond their national borders to set the cultural standard for Art Nouveau furniture throughout much of Europe.
The Musee Hotta This building was originally built by Victor Horta as his own studio and residence. This view shows the integrated interior, with both the staircase and glass dome featuring his
characteristic whiplash curves. 1898.

COIFFEUSE
This mahogany coiffeuse was designed by the artist-architect, Gustave Serrurier-Bovy, as a piece of bedroom furniture. The mirror is comprised of three panels, contained within a gently curving frame. The table section has
two pairs of drawers above and two drawers below. The elegant, curved lines of the top of the piece are echoed in the arched stretchers joining the legs, and the arch at the front of the table, which creates the kneehole. 1899.
BED FRAME
s bed frame has a bold, curvilinear shape is made from stained oak. It was designed Henry van de Velde. The head has bowed and arched profiles and ’s of raised and fielded, shield-shaped
panels. The piece terminates in splayed feet, which form part of the overall curved shape, and rests on brass casters. Henry van de Velde believed that art should follow an organic form and this influenced the shape and decoration of his furniture. c.1897-98.

SIDE CHAIR
This mahogany chair was designed by Victor Horta and illustrates his use of sumptuous materials and curving style, as shown in the design of the chair back, legs, and stretchers. The seat
is covered with a generously upholstered cushion.
c.1901.
WALNUT TABLE
This walnut occasional table has an overhanging circular top, arched apron, and curving, cabriole legs that terminate in stylized feet. The piece was designed by Henry
van de Velde. c.1916.
MAHOGANY SCREEN
This mahogany screen, designed by Gustave Serrurier-Bovy, has three glass panels that create strong vertical lines. In contrast, the top of the piece is sinuous in shape. While the glass in the lower half of the screen is original, the upper pieces are replacements.
1899.

MAHOGANY AND MIXED-WOOD TABLE
This side table is made of mahogany decorated with marquetry. The top is inlaid with a floral decoration above a short drawer, and the cupboard is inlaid with a daffodil design. The supports are embellished with sinuous tendrils and brass fittings.
c. 1902.
LADY’S BUREAU
Designed by Henry van de Velde and made by H. Scheidemantel in Weimar, this bureau design is typical of the work of van de Velde. The curved lines of the wood are used to create an unusual and organic shape, avoiding applied, inlaid, or any elaborate decoration. The only detailing is the unobtrusive, copper key mounts and the brass shoes. c.1903.

Longcase clocks
The weight-driven longcase clock, regulated by a pendulum, was introduced c.1660. The long case may have developed as protection for the pendulum and weights – they hung below the movement, which was held with the dial in a hood. Cases were mostly made by cabinet-makers and so reflect the style of contemporary furniture. Longcases are especially linked with Britain, but fine versions were also made in continental Europe and in the USA, where they are known as “tallcases”.
EARLY BRITISH LONGCASES
The earliest British longcases, made from the 1660s mainly in London, had cases of ebony-veneered oak with architectural pediment tops, but walnut-veneered clocks, typically with flat or crested tops and Baroque twist columns on the hood, were fashionable toward the end of the 17th century. The square brass dial had a narrow, applied and silvered chapter ring, applied spandrels of cherubs’ heads, scrolls, or foliage, a roughened or matted brass centre, and heat-treated, durable, blued-steel hands; most examples also had a seconds dial. Perhaps the leading clockmaker of this period was Thomas Tompion (1639-1713).
Marquetry decoration was very popular on the best longcases from the 1680s to c.1710. Before the 1690s this usually consisted of panels of birds and flowers, or geometric patterns, or parquetry, on the trunk and base. Later examples are decorated all over with elaborate designs of arabesques, scrolls, flowers, birds, and figures. Another common feature of late 17th-century longcases k the lenticle: a small, oval, glass window in the trunk
door, revealing the pendulum. With the fashion for larger rooms in the early 18th century, very tall longcases –up to 2.5m ( 8ft 2m) in height – were popular. Classical hood columns that were influenced by contemporary architecture replaced Baroque twists. Dials increasingly became larger and c.1715 the arched or break-arch dial was introduced.
Japanned decoration reflected the European interest in Chinese and Japanese art from c.1700 to the 1770s. Japanning was a European version of the costly, time-consuming process of lacquering. Japanning – usually black and green but occasionally red, yellow, blue, or cream – was painted all over the case on a layer of gesso; gilt chinoiserie designs were then added to the ground.
DUTCH LONGCASES
Longcase clocks were produced in the Netherlands from c. 1670 to the end of the 18th century. Although in many ways they resemble contemporary British clocks, some features are distinctively Dutch. These include the bombe base, sometimes with projecting scrolls; C and S scrolls at the top and bottom of the trunk door; a cast-metal Ienticle surround; large paw
or ball feet; and gilded figural finials. Cases were typically veneered in walnut, with ebony or light-coloured wood stringing or marquetry decoration. Musical work and automata in the dial arch were common features.
The earliest dials were square and had narrow, sometimes skeletonized, chapter rings. Around 1715-20 the break-arch dial came into general use the addition of the arch allowed more
elements to be displayed, such as the maker’s name, a strike/silent lever, the phases of the moon, or even automata. After c1800 the minutes were numbered only every 15.
LATER BRITISH AND AMERICAN LONGCASES In the 18th century high-quality longcase clocks were produced in English cities outside London and in Scotland, especially in Bristol, Oxford, Liverpool, and Edinburgh. From c.1750 the majority of fashionable London makers used mahogany for cases, while oak was popular elsewhere in Britain; makers in the USA, where the industry was well established on the eastern seaboard, preferred indigenous woods such as maple and cherry, although mahogany was also used. London cases of this period typically feature an elaborate pagoda top, two or three brass ball-and-spire finials, and sometimes quarter columns at the corners of the trunk and base, with decorative brass stop-fluting.
The arched brass dial with applied chapter ring and spandrels remained popular and some dials from the 1770s also featured a subsidiary calendar dial, instead of
an aperture. Engraved one-piece brass or silvered-brass dials appeared between 1750 and 1770. Iron dials,
painted with floral motifs, portraits, or mythological and allegorical figures, were introduced in the 1770s and used extensively on British provincial longcases and in the USA, where supplies of brass were limited.
In the Victorian period longcases suffered a decline in quality: painted dials, broad, flimsily constructed cases, and mass-produced movements were common. Novelty and bracket clocks were more popular than longcases, although longcase regulators remained in fashion.
FRENCH LONGCASES
Weight-driven longcases were never made on a large scale in France. More popular at the beginning of the 18th century was the pendule stir socle, a spring-driven bracket clock on a matching tall pedestal or plinth. Cases were made by such leading French cabinet-makers as Andre-Charles BOUlle (1642-1732). Examples by Boulle are typically surmounted by a gilt-bronze figure. In the mid-18th century the best French makers produced a type of longcase which, although not a true regulator or precision clock, was known as a it regulateur. With its outward-curving, bombe trunk, it was very different in style from British longcase clocks. Cases were finely veneered in walnut or rosewood, with rich ormolu mounts and details in mahogany, sycamore, tulipwood, and olivewood.
Production of the pendule stir socle and the regulateur was confined mainly to Paris, but other major centres of clockmaking in the 18th and 19th centuries included the Jura region and the Franche-Comte, the latter renowned for its Comtoise longcases. Most late Comtoise clocks
featured an elaborate pressed-brass pendulum, visible through a teardrop-shaped, glazed trunk section where the case was at its most bulbous; these pendulums were matched by elaborate pressed-brass dial frames.
• WOODS Britain: ebony-veneered oak was used in 1660s, walnut and olivewood veneers in 1670; walnut-veneered cases were used c.1715; mahogany first appeared in 1720s and by c.1750 had largely supplanted walnut, oak remained popular in the provinces in the 1 8th century; USA: indigenous woods Such as cherry and maple gave a distinctive style; some mahogany was also used
• DIALS square dials were typical until c.1715; thereafter the break-arch dial, often featuring a rolling moon or the maker’s name, was popular; silvered dials appeared c.1760, white dials c. 1770, circular dials c.1800; painted metal dials are typical on American pieces
• CASES earliest British cases are in simple architectural style; after 1670s marquetry decoration was used, also on Dutch clocks; lacquer was used in the Netherlands mid- to late 17th century and was popular in Britain c.1720-70s; chinoiserie designs were very popular
• MARRIAGES dials and movements -,veto often removed from one case and placed in another: look for a pendulum that appears too large for its case, a dial that does not fit the hood, or any parts that are not original
• CUT-DOWNS longcases that have been shortened are known as “cut-downs”; peg holes will be visible if feet have been removed; outline of removed cresting or finials may be visible; proportions may look awkward

The eighteenth century
The somewhat oppressive style of Louis XIV died with him. After his death life at court was characterised by elegance and a lighter touch. The effect was also felt in art with the salons of Paris being at the heart of the cultural life. The luxury of city life worked through to the country homes of the aristocracy which set an example to all Europe. The houses were extended with libraries, boudoirs, dining rooms, ballrooms, dressing rooms, bedrooms, workrooms and quarters for the servants being added. To give each room
its distinctive function, the range of furniture also became extended.
France — Regency and Rococo
During the Duke of Orleans’ regency rooms were still furnished with robust furniture but in the second half of the eighteenth century this altered radically. The fashion switched to lighter, more elegant designs that were also somewhat decadent in their decorative style. This made itself apparent in furniture with flowing lines, S-forms, and scrolls. Rococo was a fairly radical style period that endured for a shorter period in France than in other European countries. Customers made ever increasing demands on the furniture makers and furniture was required that was larger in size.
This caused a demarcation among the furniture makers with them specialising for instance in a particular type of expensive wood which they then made into furniture of the very highest standards. This was equally true of the bronze founders who engraved their adornments as if it were jewellery.
Increased demand brought about a certain amount of standardisation. The ebenistes started to buy in timber, drawers, mouldings, marquetry, and handles and catches. All the ebenistes were required to sign their work from 1743, except for those working in the service of the King and yet it can be extremely difficult to identify a maker. This is because all the ebenistes also sold furniture made by others and it was their custom to sign all the furniture that they sold.
Daily life for the upper echelons of French society was extremely lively. Lots of callers were received and many visits also made, and in the evening they either attended or gave dinner parties. Lots of different types of seating were therefore needed which had to be comfortable.
Only curved forms would do for these. Among the new types of seating there was a short upholstered sofa of which one type was known as a berg&e.
This had a closed back.
There was also the bergere a joue, which somewhat resembled a modern wing chair, and a number of versions of the chaise longue for lounging on. A chaise longue that was open at the front was known as a turquoise, while the variety with upholstered armrests was known as a vieilleuse.
A canape has open armrests at the side, while a sofa has S-form closed side arms. The dressing table was accompanied by a fauteuil de toilette and a desk or bureau by a fauteuil de bureau. Rococo furniture was decorated with brocade, damask, velvet, or satin. Damask came from Genoa, Lyon, or Peking. Gobelin tapestry and cloth with petit-point embroidery from the state factory at Aubusson were used to upholster furniture. Woven reed was also used to make seats and chairs backs.
The gilt carved cartouches and shells of Italy disappeared from decorations to be replaced with unrestricted compositions with ribbons and flower stems.
The rocaille from which some say Rococo got its name came into vogue around 1750. There was a movement, up to the middle of the century, away from structure-led form towards ornamental design and was expressed also in the bronze embellishments. These were applied to table legs for example where stringers and legs met. A piece of furniture with a purely decorative function is the Rococo console which eventually replaced the console table.
Cabinets disappeared from interiors during the Rococo period except for in country homes and those of the citizenry, although there were half-height cabinets with two doors serving as wash-stand chiffoniers known as meuble d’entre deux and small bookcases with two doors. There would be a games table in
the salon, sometimes with a chessboard inlaid into its top and the round gueridon or pedestal table was made for all manner of small items. There would be a large table in the dining room together with a whole series of smaller tables and for when they wished to talk without being overheard by the servants, there would be a ‘dumb waiter’ on which the staff would leave the food before retiring. In a ladies’ room there would certainly be a dressing table or table de toilette which later became known as a poudreuse. The lady would also have a writing table or bonheur du jour in one of her rooms. Men’s desks were much heavier in appearance, usually made from palisander but other words were also used for bureaux. Flat-fronted bureaux were popular until 1750 after which the cylindrical bureaux became more fashionable.
There would be several night tables in the sleeping quarters: the tables de nuit and tables de lit. During the Rococo period beds became more elegant and graceful but often with whimsical valances from which their names were derived of lit a la Chinoise, l’Anglaise, l’Allemagne, or l`Italienne. No chests or coffers were to be seen anywhere in the salons, these had been replaced by a commode with two attendant corner cabinets.
The form of the commode had also changed. The curves of the front had now disappeared and the bronze handles and catches were geometrically arranged. The bottom of the commode was bowed. As the years passed, Rococo became increasingly more complex. Bronze ornamentation and intarsia inlays now covered the entire fronts of pieces, without regard for the drawers.
Subsequently the decoration moved more to the sides of pieces. Bronze ornamentation became more simple with cleaner lines after 1740. Whatever their specialisation, virtually every furniture maker produced commodes during the Rococo era. Some of the famous names are J.P.
Latz, J.F. Leleu, Nicolas Pineau, F. Oeben, J.H. Riesener, Bernard van Risen-burgh, and Abraham Roentgen.
There was strongly exotic side to Rococo so that lacquered furniture was extremely popular at this time. Rococo flourished most during the first half of the eighteenth century and at this time French lacquer-work production overtook even that of the Dutch who had been the biggest producers of reproduction chi-
noiserie and the largest importers of Chinese and Japanese lacquer items. The Dutch Martin brothers were the major producers of reproduction chinoiserie.
Germany and Austria
The political situation had as great an influence on the furniture industry during the Rococo period as during the preceding era.
The artistic and cultural leanings of the individual courts depended both on their geographical position and political realities. Hence the main cities of Berlin, Dresden, Munich, and Vienna took their lead from the French court.
The German/Dutch Rhineland and the area between Liege and Achen differed markedly from the German/French Rhineland. There was a clear preference for Dutch and English style furniture in northern Germany.
The biggest variation in types of furniture and their styles resulted from the personalities of the persons commissioning them. When German makers did follow French inspiration they did not do so closely. This resulted in the Bandestil or `banded style’ which got its name from the banding motif popularly used until the mid eighteenth century on much furniture, but specially on bureaux.
A German Rococo secretaire had a style of its own, with a curved form which gave a far from restful appearance. The legs and corners were also slightly bowed and slanted. These secretaires were mainly made of ebony and fitted with drawers. Colourful marquetry was very popular for decoration. Frankfurt cabinets had a similar appearance and were therefore also extremely popular.
Northern makers who followed French ideas for commodes fitted them with three, four, or five drawers but they used no veneer. Further south, in contrast, a commode was deemed to be a tall cabinet finished in walnut veneer. This was finished unpretentiously with iron handles and fittings and had straight sides. The only decorated examples were those for aristocratic houses of the princes. The commode was a piece of furniture for the common folk. These were finished with refined carving in unvarnished oak and walnut in both Achen and Liege. These cities also made corner cabinets for tableware, wardrobes,
small and tall dressers, and display cabinets.
The bureau was adopted from France too but German versions were both lower and less deep.The glazed fronted Dutch cabinet was further developed in north-west Germany and there was also clearly a Dutch influence in their lacquered furniture. Some chairs were both lacquered and decorated with inlays. The most common furniture though is made of stained walnut and oak.
The most precious pieces were gilded. Furniture made of beech or lime was usually painted yellow or white. Luxury items of furniture were also made in some places in Austria and Switzerland, often with the help of important artists. There are also delightful country pieces from this era. Rocaille motifs continued to be used in painted decoration until the middle of the nineteenth century.
France - Louis XVI
A desire for the classical world returned in the middle of the eighteenth century resulted in a number of artists making journeys to Greece and Italy. Classicism became more widely known through their books, lectures, and works of art. Excavation of Herculaneum and Pompeii produced a great array of artistic treasures which inspired many contemporary artists.
This also coincided with a movement in art towards simplicity and naturalism. This trend manifested itself first in furniture, before the other arts. Furniture makers once more used motifs such as plaited garlands, egg and tongue mouldings, Hermes, nymphs, lion’s heads, vines, rosettes, bull’s heads, and Doric friezes. Rococo had shown a preference for gilding, white paint, and light colours. The mouldings and bronze ornamentation now faded into the background. Muted coloured veneers
Louis XVI dining chair.
From the 1880’s, at the end of Rococo, inlays of Sevres porcelain had been used together with glass painting and lacquer from Asia. Floral motifs were popular for upholstery fabrics. Chairs were not just required to look fine but also to be comfortable. The backs of chairs became rounded or oval in the 1870’s. These were crested with carved decoration. Legs resembling fluted columns were popular. The types of seating did not change though.
A newcomer was the three-seat sofa known as a confidente. The sides of both sofas and bergeres were now generally straight. Console tables stood on a fluted column. Beds were no longer placed in an alcove and the side not against the wall was decorated.The common folk’s furniture remained conservative. Items made for the citizenry
included two-door cabinets, ladies’ and medium height two-door dressers. Commodes were rectangular, smooth, and mainly set on conical legs.
A newcomer to less exalted homes was the cylinder bureau.One of the best furniture makers of the time was undoubtedly J.H. Riesener.
His pieces are decorated with marquetry flowers, urns, and fruits. Furniture was decorated with many allegorical figures and bronze embellishments. Riesener partially changed his approach towards the end of the eighteenth century with the introduction of straight legs and more geometrical marquetry. He undoubtedly gave his closest attention to his rectangular secretaires and commodes with rounded corners Most of the ebenistes working for the French court were actually German.
Great names among suppliers to the court include J.F. Schwerdtfeger and Adam Weisweller. The greatest of all were Abraham and David Roentgen, who also sold to the courts of other European rulers.
A provincial Louis XVI cabinet with basin for rinsing glasses.
David Roentgen’s speciality was furniture with secret mechanisms. His marquetry decorations were based on designs by the fresco artist Januarius Zick.
David Roentgen lived in Paris between 1775 and 1780 and it was at this time that his finest pieces were made. Most of them were light in colour with bronze decoration.
The first to incorporate English ideas in furniture in France was G. Jacob, a woodcarver, who made armchairs of mahogany. The backs of his chairs were in the form of an oval medallion and they had console legs.
The fan-like fretwork form of his chair backs was very fine. The German maker J.G. Bennemann specialised after 1779 in large horizontally arranged dressers that were decorated with bronze adornments specially made by P.P. Thomire.

The Art Deco style of the 1920s and 1930x, which derived ‘its name from the 1925 Paris Exhibition – the Exposition des Arts Decoratifs et Industrials Modernes – was the first truly modern style of the 20th century. .In their subject-matter, style, and bright colours, Art Deco furniture, jewellery, ceramics, cs, posters, sculpture, and other decorative arts reflected the general atmosphere of optimism that prevailed after the devastation of World War I. The increased liberation of women, the rise of jazz music and Hollywood film-making, the preoccupation with speed, travel, and leisure pursuits, and the growth of commercial competition and advertising all had a strong Influence on Art Deco designers. Until the late 1970s Art Deco pieces attracted little interest among dealers and collectors, but since that time, with numerous exhibitions and Publications on the subject, the popularity  of collecting Art Deco has increased enormously.

Like the Paris Exhibition of 1900 –which had been the showcase for the Art Nouveau style – the 192-5 Exhibition aimed to promote France as the pre-eminent centre for the production of luxury goods. Most European countries, except for or Germany, were involved; the USA declined to take part, deciding that it could not meet the entry requirements for examples of work of “new and original inspiration” stipulated by the organizers. The exhibition was therefore dominated by pavilions displaying the work of leading French designers, such as the
furniture designer Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann (1879-1933) and the glassmaker Rene Laliquc ( 1860-1945). The design studios of the major Parisian department stores, such as Primavera at Printemps, La Maitrise at Galeries Lafayette,  and Pomona at Au Bon Marche, displayed complete interiors, with examples of furniture, household wares, textiles, and carpets in matching styles.
Most of the exhibits reflected the “official taste” of the exhibition; forms were adapted from historical or traditional styles, but with lavish ornament of stylized flowers, figures, and animals, and geometric patterns such as zigzags and chevrons. This was particularly evident in Ruhlmann’s Pavilion d’un Collectioneur, with its chairs influenced by 18th-century design, boldly  patterned wall coverings, and elaborate chandeliers, and also in the design by Andre Groult for an ambassadorial boudoir with shagreen-covered furniture.
This style contrasted strongly with the few displays by Modernist designers. The Pavilion de I’Esprit Nouveau was designed by the avant-garde Swiss-born architect Le Corbusier (1887-1965) and exemplified his vision of a new, minimalist architecture and lifestyle. His small two-storey house, with its doors, windows, and other structural elements based on a modular system of standard-sized units, contained mass-produced furniture and was decorated with abstract paintings. Although this style made a strong impact, its influence did not become widespread until the 19 30x, when it was represented at the 1937 Universal Exhibition in Paris and also at the 1939 World’s Fair in New York.

THE 1925 PARIS EXHIBITION
The Art Deco style, although mainly associated with the 1920s and 1930s, did not suddenly emerge fully formed in this period. Rich ornament, exotic materials, and emphasis on comfort – all features of the style – were already evident in the decorative arts, especially in French furniture, before and during World War I. However, the development of the Art Deco style is mainly associated with the 1925 exhibition in Paris, which lasted from April to October. This exhibition was originally planned for 1915, Lis a continuation of the French government-sponsored international exhibitions that were held in Paris from the 19th century, but was postponed because of the war.
MOTIFS, INFLUENCES, AND
NEW MATERIALS
The standard motifs of the Art Deco style included such traditional decorative elements as bouquets of flowers, animals, and figures of young maidens. However, these were always stylized and angular rather than naturalistic and were often combined with purely geometric motifs, including chevrons, zigzags, Sunbursts, and lightning bolts. This emphasis on stylization and abstract and repeated forms was influenced by the growing impact of the machine, especially automobiles, trains, and aeroplanes, and by such abstract art movements of the early 20th century as Cubism and Futurism. The taste for bright colours was also inspired by the vibrant Fauvist paintings of Henri Matisse, Andre Derain and Maurice Vlaminck, which used contrasting tones and non-naturalistic colours.
Such movements were in turn influenced by the stylized, abstract forms of African masks and sculpture, which were widely collected and imported into Europe in large quantities at this time. Certain elements of Art Deco decorative arts, such as ceramic wall masks, show the inspiration of African art, while African figures featured as decoration on the ceramics of such potters as Rene Buthaud (1886-1987). Also around this time, black American culture in the form of jazz music was introduced into Europe from the USA; the jazz-inspired Revue Negre in Paris, featuring the black dancer and actress Josephine Baker, influenced the work of Buthaud and other Art Deco designers.
The taste for Oriental art was encouraged between 1911 and 1920 by the exotic stage and costume designs of Leon Bakst ( 1866-1924) for the Ballets Russes. These had a significant influence on the Art Deco style, and sparked a fashion for Oriental black-and-red colour combinations as well as lacquered furniture, metalwork, and objets d’art. One of the best exponents of the style was the Swiss designer Jean Dunand (1877-1942). Leading sculptors in France, such as Dimitri Chiparus 1880-1950), also produced figures of dancers in exotic costumes.

THE MODERN MOVEMENT
An alternative to the luxury Art Deco style developed mainly outside France, especially in Germany, during and after World War 1. Progressive artists, architects, and designers argued that the new era demanded good-quality, functional design for all; that new technology and machine production should be exploited fully;  and that form must be derived from function, Without unnecessary ornament.
This movement began in 1907 with the Deutscher Werkbund, an alliance of designers and industrialists. In 1919 the Bauhaus was founded in Weimar by the German architect and designer Walter Gropius (1883-1969); in 1925 the school moved to Dessau, and it was closed by the Nazis in 1933. Bauhaus members designed high-quality furniture, lighting, metalwork, and textiles for industrial production, using new materials, including plywood and tubular steel. Many designs, such as the tubular steel furniture by Marcel Breuer (1902-81) and the glass and metal lamps by Marianne Brandt (1893-1983), are still widely produced. Other Modernist designers of the period included Le Corbusier in France, Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) in Finland, and Gerrit Rietveld (1888-1964) in the Netherlands.
Both the decorative and the Modern strands of Art Deco had a strong influence in the USA, where the style’s vibrant colours and rhythmic patterns expressed the optimism of a young
country that was also the world leader in the mass production of consumer goods. Designers including Paul T. Frankl ( 1886-19,58) and Donald Deskey (1894-1989) used materials also favoured by European Modernists, such as chrome-plated tubular steel. In the 1930s designers such as Norman Bel Geddes (18931958) and Walter Derwin Teague (1883-1960) began to develop their own distinctive version of Art Deco, known as “streamlining”.

Art Deco designers used an extremely wide range of  materials. Luxury manufacturers, including Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann, Paul Follot (1877-1941), and the cabinet-makers Louis Sue (1875-1968) and Andre Mare (1887-1932), specialized in fine-quality pieces veneered in exotic woods such as amboyna and Macassar ebony, combined with ivory, shagreen, enamel, gold and silver leaf, and lacquer. Modernist and industrial designers, especially in the USA, showed greater interest in new materials such as aluminium, chromium, and tubular steel. Lavish cinema interiors were created relatively inexpensively from combinations of chromium, coloured glass, and painted concrete. Bakelite, a type of cheap, easily moulded plastic patented in 1907, was widely employed as a substitute for wood in such mass-produced items as radios.

Statues
Figures, more than any other category of decorative accessory, seem to say “Deco” best. The statues exhibit not only features commonly associated with Art Deco, but also they express the spirit of freedom and optimism in the future that prevailed at the time. It is not surprising that these personifications beguile collectors. As noted earlier, figures were so popular that they were fashioned into dual purpose articles as well as art objects. This section, however, contains only the latter. Statues, statuettes or figurines and a few head forms or busts are included. (For additional examples of figures, see Ashtrays, Bookends, Candle Holders, Incense Burners and Lamps.)
Most of the Deco figural subjects were women. Pieces were made with couples forming dance partners or duets. Men were also modeled as sportsmen or represented as mythical gods or even circus clowns. Animals made along Deco lines are not so rare as male examples but they are less prevalent than female themes. All kinds of animals, however, were made as decorative sculpture. Members of the cat family (jaguar, panther, tiger) and deer, elk and gazelles as well as dogs (like the greyhound) projected the essential components of the Deco image—speed, grace and sleekness. Certain animals, especially dogs, were often part of female dominated scenes. Even birds such as cockatoos, ducks, parrots and penquins were shaped in stylized forms to fit in with “modern” decor.
The nude or semi-nude female apparently was the most favorite figural topic of the period. It is held in no less esteem by collectors. Poses varied from lanquid, reclining positions to ones expressing movement. Grace and speed were implied by various dance positions or hair shaped as wings or fashioned in a “wind blown” style. Kneeling or standing figures with arms stretched forward symbolized movement into the future. Arms stretched overhead, perhaps holding a globe or sphere, seem to indicate awareness and interest in the world at large.
While the nude and semi-nude figures may suggest the spirit of the period, fully clothed models portray the dress and hair styles in vogue. Interest in other cultures was also exhibited by the figure’s costume. The Egyptian influence was dominant in the mid 1920’s, after the opening of King Tut’s tomb in 1923. Several of the figures shown in this section and some in other categories (see Lamps and Incense Burners) flaunt the trappings of Egyptian attire such as metal breastplates, harem pants and elaborate headdresses. Female figures with black finishes show the influence of African art and black American entertainers. Jazz musicians and torch singers became very popular during the 1920’s, especially in
France.
Decorative figures not only were made in a number of sizes and poses, but also they were made from many different materials, including bronze, copper, metal alloys, plaster, pottery and porcelain. The French bronzes are the most coveted and most expensive. Bronze combined with ivory and precious jewels, silver or gold is called “chryselephantine” work. D.H. Chiparus, who worked in France, is noted to have excelled in this type of sculpture. Prices for his original pieces are in the tens of thousands of dollars today. Collectors should be aware, however, that current bronze manufacturers reproduce or imitate some of his figures as well as several other famous sculptors of the period. Although advertised as manufactured with the “lost wax” method and sporting the same or similarly spelled names of well known artists such as Chiparus, Zach or Preiss, these bronzes are still only replicas and not from the period. Unfortunately, they are sometimes sold by dealers as authentic sculptures. Wholesale prices are not cheap, but do not be surprised to find that sum multiplied several times over when such an item is sold in a retail outlet.
Because bronzes were expensive to manufacture, it did not take entrepreneuers long to recognize the value of mass producing similar statues from metal alloys. Pot metal, white metal or spelter are names frequently used to identify such alloys. Psuedo bronze figures were made in both Europe and America. Even if a piece can be identified as being of French origin, do not assume the metal is bronze. Many of the pot metal pieces were executed quite well. Different patinations and finishes were used to give either a “bronze” look or colored surface. Some were even made with ivory faces and hands, imitating chryselephatine types. Fabricated ivory, often called “ivorene,” was sometimes used, however.
Patination and cold painted are two terms used to describe bronze finishes. Patination refers to a colored finish which is fired onto the metal and thus becomes pern-ranent. Cold painted means the finish was not fired onto the metal. Lacquer was applied to preserve the color, but this type of finish is not totally permanent. Some of the metal alloy figures were simply painted without any sealing coat. Consequently, over time, the paint has chipped or become noticeably worn. Those with apparent surface damage can sometimes be purchased for bargain prices. Dealers have them repainted, but prices should-not be the same as for those in good or original condition. Inspect figures carefully for detail to note signs of age and wear on finished as well as whether there are chips on the face, hair or limbs.
Because of the demand for Deco figures, pot metal statues are far from cheap. Those in good condition, depending on size, will cost several hundred dollars. It is not uncommon for examples to cost $1,000 or more, especially if it can be determined the piece was made in France. It is rare to find any authentic Deco metal figure for less than $100.
Porcelain figurines were made by several European factories prior to World War II. Goldscheider, an Austrian company, is well known for its Deco pieces. Some of the firms who are more famous for their table wares also produced figural items during that time. The Lenox china company in Trenton, New Jersey, made porcelain figures which portrayed Deco themes. Porcelain pieces are generally much more moderately priced than metal statues, but they still are not cheap. Few cost less than $200.
Earthenware or simple pottery figures were also made in this country and abroad. Usually earthenware
items are less expensive than those made of hard paste porcelain or bone china. Not only was the manufacturing process cheaper, but also earthenware is not as strong. It chips and breaks easily and also can become discolored or crazed over time. Pottery figures, however, are often comparable or higher in price than porcelain ones. Those made by American art potteries are very collectible. Some made by American companies, which produced inexpensive pottery dishes and accessories, also made a few figures. Such items were not the company’s main product, and thus the figures are scarce, as well as popular, and bring high prices compared with other items they manufactured.
The statues and figurines are grouped here according to their composition: Ceramic (pottery and porcelain), Plaster and Metals (bronze, copper & metal alloys).