Very fine French Empire period ormolu Ceres clock after Thomire

With an enamel dial and mounted and adorned with beautiful gilt-bronze furnishings and ornaments, this fine piece is a French Empire-period clock, dating to the early nineteenth century, c.1810.

The large white dial and movement is surrounded by a vast array of ormolu, from the base and casings to the large figural sculpture that sits atop. The model is that of Ceres, the Roman goddess of fertility and agriculture, after a design by Pierre-Phillipe Thomire, a leading bronzier and artist in the First French Empire period, whose work, like this, skilfullly worked Neoclassical elements into the Empire style. Grains of wheat can be seen towards her right hand, and her feminine figure is complemented by an arcing piece of drapery, that frames her, as much as it does the work as a whole.