Exceptional quality French First Empire mantel clock in antique vert marble and patinated bronze and ormolu. The clock is signed on the dial by the eminent maker L’Echopié Jne à Paris. The most unusual three tier case is surmounted by the main subject of the clock, that is a woman in classical dress suckling her baby while sitting upon the most luxurious and expensive day bed with ormolu griffin supports and elaborate cushions with tassels. Below this is a patinated bronze base with applied cast ormolu mounts to the front depicting children playing horn and tambourine within a field and surrounded by toys. There are also applied ormolu mounts of goats to the side of the case. This base stands on ormolu paw feet above a further antique vert marble base with ormolu dish inset for the pendulum with floral mounts and ormolu mouldings to the edge and standing upon fine ormolu toupee feet. The fine white convex enamel dial with elaborate and beautifully cast and pierced gilt bronze hands pointing to black Roman numerals is surrounded by a well decorated ormolu bezel. The dial is signed L’Echopié Jne à Paris. Adam L’Echopié was a fine maker of clocks working in Paris in the late 18th century and early 19th century. He had two clockmaker sons, one, another Adam known as L'Echopie Jeune who made this clock. The family worked at Rue Neuve des Petits Champs from 1772 till about 1830. The movement is of 8 day duration and regulated by a silk suspended pendulum. It strikes the hours and halves on a cast bell by means of the countwheel system. This clock was almost certainly made in the period 1811-12 and I believe may have been commissioned to celebrate the birth to Empress Louise of Napoleon's son, the Future King of Rome in 1811. height 18 inches high by 15.5 inches wide by 5.5 inches deep (45cm by 38.76 by 13.75). A near-identical clock, although signed Bassot à Paris, is illustrated and described in the Encyclopedie de La Pendule Francaise, by Pierre Kjellberg pp 390. A closer version can be seen in "French Bronze Clocks" by Elke Niehusser pp178.