An exceptionally fine and elaborate Swiss gold, enamel and pearl-set musical singing-bird box with incorporated watch, made in Geneva between 1815 and 1819. The gold case bears the mark of Rémond, Lamy, Mercier & Company, with the singing-bird movement by the celebrated Frères Rochat. The rounded rectangular gold case is lavishly decorated throughout with translucent royal-blue and black enamel over an engine-turned flowerhead trellis ground. Rows of graduated seed pearls border the case and surround the central oval medallion, creating a particularly rich contrast against the remarkably deep blue enamel. The oval bird cover is finely painted in enamel with a still life of flowers and fruit. When released, the cover rises to reveal the brightly feathered singing bird, which emerges through the finely chased gold grille and performs its animated song, moving its body, head, beak and tail before disappearing beneath the cover at the conclusion of the performance. The singing-bird mechanism is the work of Frères Rochat of Geneva, among the greatest makers of singing-bird boxes of the early 19th century. Rochat mechanisms are particularly admired for the sophistication and musical quality of their birdsong. Rather than producing merely a succession of whistles and trills, Rochat incorporated a distinct melodic sequence within the bird's song. It is this combination of melody with remarkably naturalistic birdsong that distinguishes their finest work from that of other contemporary makers. Unusually, this box combines the singing-bird mechanism with both a musical movement and an incorporated watch. The small enamel watch dial is set into the front of the case, with gold and blued-steel hands. A concealed hinged front panel opens to reveal the various winding and setting squares, including those for the musical movement, its speed regulation, the watch and the singing-bird mechanism. A further concealed compartment in the side of the case accommodates the key. The extraordinary quality of the case is entirely commensurate with the complexity of the mechanisms it contains. The lavish use of gold, translucent enamel and seed pearls, together with the finely painted miniature and remarkably compact arrangement of watch, music and automaton, places this amongst the more ambitious luxury objects produced by the great Geneva workshops during the opening decades of the 19th century. The gold case bears the mark of Rémond, Lamy, Mercier & Company, one of Geneva's important goldsmithing concerns of the period, responsible for cases of exceptional quality for the luxury market. These highly sophisticated objets de vertu were produced for an international clientele at a time when Geneva stood at the forefront of European mechanical and decorative arts. A particularly rare and highly sophisticated example of early 19th-century Genevan craftsmanship, bringing together many of the most desirable elements found in these extraordinary objects: a gold and enamel case, extensive pearl setting, painted miniature, incorporated watch, musical movement and a singing-bird mechanism by Frères Rochat. Geneva, 1815–1819