A Stunning Hexagonal Sevres Plague Singing bird Cage by Bontems

A Stunning Hexagonal Sevres Plague Singing bird Cage by Bontems
A stunning and very fine Hexagonal gilt bronze and Sevres plaque single singing bird-in-cage, by Bontems, French, circa 1880 Going-barrel movement. When wound with the key and start/stop lever actuated, the large and perfectly perched red thrush begins to sing his chorus, moving naturalistic beak, tailfeather and head from side-to-side to continuous birdsong. One of the most sought after and most looked forward to models ever made by Bontems, this example is offered in pristine original condition. Hexagonal shaped, which is one of the rarer models you'll be lucky to come across, with 8 seperate porcelain plaques depicting lovers alternating with song birds within tooled gilt and bleu céleste borders Gilt bronze singing bird cages, usually with stained glass, or fine porcelain panel inserts, were made in limited numbers during the 19th century to commission orders. The first maker to offer a bird cage to this design was Jacquet Droz in about 1798 with his large singing bird in cage, fusee-driven with a clock to the underside so when hung up, its use was three-dimensional. Bontems created this with the past in mind and was no doubt the only maker to undertake such a feat to this degree of quality. The castings and finish to each element of the cage is truly amazing - not a single part disappoints the eye of a top collector. Take a very good look at the egg-and-dart moulded frieze at the base of the cage. Very much the detail one would expect from a carved wooden example which the craftsman would have spend many hours getting to this level of accuracy. As good as fine painted enamel, the porcelain panels with that lovely blue border strike up the perfect colour choice to go with the richness of the gilded bronze. A singing bird cage of the highest order. 22Inches High by 11.5 Inches Wide and 11.5 Inches Deep

Stock Number: 5901

Price: £19,950

Availability: In Stock

Contact us about this antique

<< Previous Page <<

Click to view similar items.

Currency Converter by Oanda Forex