Douglas Fisher

A particularly decorative late 19th-century French singing bird box, attributed to Flajoulot, circa 1895, the rectangular case executed in rich tortoiseshell and finely worked in the...

Moser & Cie Silver and Blue Guilloché Enamel Quarter Repeating Carriage Clock, circa 1910 A particularly fine and unusual Swiss silver and translucent blue guilloché enamel quarter-repeating carriage clock, retailed by the celebrated firm Moser & Cie, circa 1910 and made for the Russian market. The rectangular silver case is beautifully decorated to the front, sides and top with rich translucent royal-blue enamel over finely engine-turned guilloché decoration. Different patterns have been employed across the case, including an especially attractive radiating sunburst design beneath the dial, which gives the enamel remarkable depth and brilliance as it catches the light. The clock is surmounted by an elegant scrolling silver carrying handle, with the quarter-repeat button positioned centrally on the top of the case. The white enamel dial is signed “MOSER & CIE”, with stylised black Arabic numerals and an outer minute track. Particularly attractive are the original gold hands, providing a luxurious contrast against the white dial and vivid blue guilloche enamel. The rear silver door opens to reveal a high-quality Swiss quarter-repeating movement, which strikes the hours and quarters on demand when the button on the top of the clock is depressed. Of particular interest, the movement is stamped NOCTURNE and BREVET 30225. Nocturne was a specialist Swiss maker of sophisticated small clock movements and is particularly notable for having supplied movements to Cartier, placing the mechanism within the sphere of the finest Swiss-made luxury clocks of the early 20th century. The combination of a Nocturne quarter-repeating movement with a case retailed by Moser & Cie is especially appealing. The combination of Swiss and Russian marks is particularly appropriate for H. Moser & Cie, whose history was intimately connected with Imperial Russia. Heinrich Moser, born into a Swiss watchmaking family in Schaffhausen in 1805, travelled to Russia as a young watchmaker and established H. Moser & Cie in St Petersburg in 1828. The company rapidly developed a prestigious clientele amongst the Russian aristocracy and Imperial Court, while its watches and movements were produced through Moser's Swiss manufacturing operations. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, H. Moser & Cie had become one of the most respected names in the Russian luxury watch trade, with its Swiss manufacture producing everything from straightforward watches to highly complicated timepieces for its wealthy Russian clientele. This clock dates from the fascinating final period of that relationship, shortly before the Russian Revolution brought the firm's Imperial Russian business to an end. The combination of H. Moser & Cie, translucent guilloché enamel, high-grade silver, Imperial Russian provenance and a complicated repeating movement makes this an especially rare survival from the golden age of Russian luxury objects. Dating from the years immediately preceding the Russian Revolution of 1917, this clock is a particularly evocative survival from the final period of Imperial Russia, when firms such as Moser commissioned some of the finest Swiss manufacturers to produce luxury objects for their Russian clientele. The silver case bears Swiss silver marks, together with a Russian import/control mark, consistent with its manufacture in Switzerland for the Russian market. With its rich blue guilloché enamel, gold hands, sophisticated quarter-repeating Nocturne movement, Moser & Cie signature and Imperial Russian provenance, this is an exceptionally attractive and highly collectable example of an early 20th-century luxury travelling clock...

An exceptionally rare and imposing English Regency mantel clock, circa 1810, modelled as the ancient mother goddess Cybele, seated upon a throne and holding the clock in her hands an...

A superb and highly decorative French automaton lighthouse clock and weather compendium by André Romain Guilmet of Paris, circa 1880, from his celebrated series of Industrial novelty...

An exceptionally elegant pair of George III ormolu, patinated bronze and white marble griffin candlesticks, after the celebrated design by Sir William Chambers (1723–1796), architect...

Swiss Silver & Imperial Yellow Guilloché Enamel Miniature Alarm Carriage Clock by E. Mathey-Tissot retailed by Tiffany A particularly attractive and rare Swiss miniature silver and...

Early Engraved Gilt-Bronze Strut Clock No. 565 by Thomas Cole for C.F. Hancock, circa 1850/51 A rare and early engraved gilt-bronze strut clock by Thomas Cole (1800–1864), numbered 5...

A superb 19th-century French patinated bronze sculpture of a lion by the celebrated animalier sculptor Jules Moigniez (1835–1894). The lion is modelled standing alert and powerfully ...

Charles Frodsham, Clockmaker to the Queen Fine French Hour Repeating Carriage Clock in Original Leather Travelling Case French, circa 1880. A fine quality French gilt bronze carriage...

Arthur Joseph Meadows (1843–1907) "Littlehampton" Oil on canvas. England, circa 1870–1880. A beautifully executed coastal landscape by the celebrated British marine painter Arthur Jo...

An exceptionally rare French Palais Royal musical sewing box of magnificent diamond sarcophagus form, crafted in finely chased gilt bronze and mounted with exquisitely engraved mother-of-pearl panels, French, circa 1830. The architectural case is adorned throughout with engraved mother-of-pearl panels delicately decorated with floral sprays, framed by richly chased gilt bronze borders and raised upon an elegant pierced gallery base with scrolling foliate feet. The faceted lid is surmounted by a turquoise cabochon finial, completing one of the most sophisticated and desirable designs produced by the celebrated Palais Royal workshops. Opening the lid reveals a sumptuous ruched silk-lined interior above a fitted crimson velvet tool tray retaining an excellent suite of original carved mother-of-pearl sewing implements, including scissors, needle case, stiletto, bodkin, thread winder, crochet hook and winding key. Beneath the tray is concealed the original musical movement. The movement is fitted with an early segmented steel comb, a feature associated with the finest early nineteenth-century musical mechanisms, and plays two separate airs on a pinned cylinder. Segmented comb movements are considerably scarcer than later one-piece comb examples and are highly prized by collectors for both their early construction and superior tonal quality. During the first half of the nineteenth century, the Palais Royal in Paris was Europe's foremost centre for luxury goods, where the finest bronziers, jewellers and tabletiers collaborated to produce exquisite objets de vertu for an international clientele. Musical sewing boxes represented the pinnacle of fashionable luxury, combining practical utility with exceptional craftsmanship and ingenious mechanical design. Examples of this distinctive diamond sarcophagus form are among the rarest Palais Royal sewing...

A charming and finely executed Swiss sub-miniature carriage clock in sterling silver, beautifully decorated throughout with vibrant turquoise-blue guilloché enamel over an engine-tur...