A fine and exceptionally early gold singing bird box by the celebrated Geneva makers Frères Rochat, dating to circa 1815. The finely made gold case conceals one of the most ingenious and captivating forms of early nineteenth-century mechanical automaton. At the touch of the operating slide, the oval lid opens and a beautifully feathered miniature bird rises through the opening. As it sings, the bird turns from side to side, flutters its wings and moves its beak in remarkably lifelike imitation of a living songbird. At the conclusion of its performance, the bird descends into the case and the gold lid closes automatically above it. Particularly noteworthy is the musical quality of the Rochat bird song. While later singing bird boxes by other makers often concentrate upon a sequence of trills, whistles and imitations of natural birdsong, the finest Rochat mechanisms incorporate a distinct musical melody within the bird's performance. The melody is interwoven with the characteristic calls and trills, creating a considerably more sophisticated and enchanting song. This distinctive musical performance is one of the qualities for which early Rochat singing bird boxes are especially prized. The Rochat family were among the greatest makers of mechanical singing birds working in Geneva during the early nineteenth century. Their extraordinarily sophisticated mechanisms, combined with cases produced in precious materials for a wealthy international clientele, placed their work amongst the most luxurious objets de vertu of the period. What is perhaps most remarkable is the degree of mechanical complexity contained within such a small object. Beneath the decorative gold case is an intricate miniature mechanism controlling not only the bird's song but the coordinated movement of its beak, wings and body, together with its appearance and disappearance beneath the lid. The movement stamped FR and number 426 on the movement plate. Dating from circa 1815, this exceptional gold example belongs to the earliest and most desirable period of Swiss singing bird box production and demonstrates why the work of Frères Rochat remains a benchmark by which later singing bird automata are judged