31/01/2024 General News
If – as Shakespeare so famously said – ‘music be the food of love’ then a star lot in our Fine Art & Antiques Sale on Wednesday 14 February is bound to set some hearts a flutter!
The exquisite silver-gilt and enamel singing bird box is just one of 30 items that have been consigned to the Valentine’s Day sale as part of a high-value, single-owner collection.
In excellent working order, the box dates from the mid 19th century and features a tiny, feathered bird that moves its beak, turns its head and flaps its wings whilst completing its performance.
Made by the renowned creator of automata, Charles Bruguier of Geneva (1788-1862), the box (pictured above) is of typical rectangular form and has a brightly enamelled lid decorated on top with an Alpine lake landscape and underneath a flower motif. Measuring 10cm wide, 6.5cm deep and 4.5cm high, the box carries a price estimate of £10,000 to £15,000.
Also in the collection is an extremely rare pearl and diamond quarter repeating ring watch, made by the Geneva-based company Achard & Fils circa 1800, which is one of only five known quarter repeating ring watches in existence.
Made from 18-carat gold, it has a rectangular-shaped case with canted corners. The bezel edge is set with half pearls, diamonds and gold beading, with a slide for the repeating mechanism that strikes the number of hours, and then the number of quarter hours since the last hour. It is presented in its original box case and has a price estimate of £10,000 to £15,000.
Also of note, is an important Louis XV parcel-enamelled snuff box by Claude Lisonnet, thought to have been active between 1736-1761. The ingot-shaped box is constructed from gold and enamelled en basse-taille in a striking translucent blue and is expected to reach £40,000 to £60,000.