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Lot Essay
Joseph Bouillerot, maître orfèvre in 1759.
Pierre Le Roy, maître horloger in 1765.
This spectacular clock/thermometer, a veritable monument in miniature in the form of an imposing column flanked by putti emblematic of Hercules and Mars, is a rare example of a silversmith, Joseph Bouillerot, designing and executing works in gilt-bronze. According to the inscription, it is one of three versions made by Bouillerot. The original version was commissioned by Louis XV in 1756 as a gift for Armand de Vignerot du Plessis (1696-1788), the maréchal-duc de Richelieu as thanks for his famous victory in the Seven Years War against the British fleet at the Battle of Minorca. The British commander, Admiral John Byng, was court-martialed and executed following this defeat, which led to Voltaire's famous comment in his novel Candide 'Dans ce pays-ci, il est bon de tuer de temps en temps un amiral pour encourager les autres' ('In this country, it is wise to kill an admiral from time to time to encourage the others.') The Richelieu clock was later acquired by George IV at the sale of Richelieu's collection, and subseqently in 1886 was recorded in Alfred de Rothschild's collection (see H. Ottomeyer, P. Pröschel, Vergoldete Bronzen, Munich, 1986, vol. I, p. 159, fig. 5.2.8).
Little is known about Joseph Bouillerot, but it is interesting to note that the colleague who stood surety for his maîtrise was the goldsmith Jean Frémin, who worked on the Quai de l'Horloge, so it is natural to assume that Bouillerot would have had contacts in the clock-making world which could have led to this commission from Louis XV. Bouillerot was later listed as a marchand orfévre in 1780, when he was recorded at the rue d'Enfer.
Pierre Le Roy, maître horloger in 1765.
This spectacular clock/thermometer, a veritable monument in miniature in the form of an imposing column flanked by putti emblematic of Hercules and Mars, is a rare example of a silversmith, Joseph Bouillerot, designing and executing works in gilt-bronze. According to the inscription, it is one of three versions made by Bouillerot. The original version was commissioned by Louis XV in 1756 as a gift for Armand de Vignerot du Plessis (1696-1788), the maréchal-duc de Richelieu as thanks for his famous victory in the Seven Years War against the British fleet at the Battle of Minorca. The British commander, Admiral John Byng, was court-martialed and executed following this defeat, which led to Voltaire's famous comment in his novel Candide 'Dans ce pays-ci, il est bon de tuer de temps en temps un amiral pour encourager les autres' ('In this country, it is wise to kill an admiral from time to time to encourage the others.') The Richelieu clock was later acquired by George IV at the sale of Richelieu's collection, and subseqently in 1886 was recorded in Alfred de Rothschild's collection (see H. Ottomeyer, P. Pröschel, Vergoldete Bronzen, Munich, 1986, vol. I, p. 159, fig. 5.2.8).
Little is known about Joseph Bouillerot, but it is interesting to note that the colleague who stood surety for his maîtrise was the goldsmith Jean Frémin, who worked on the Quai de l'Horloge, so it is natural to assume that Bouillerot would have had contacts in the clock-making world which could have led to this commission from Louis XV. Bouillerot was later listed as a marchand orfévre in 1780, when he was recorded at the rue d'Enfer.