A Louis XVI ormolu-mounted patinated bronze and white marble mantel clock, attributed to Pierre-Philippe Thomire circa 1790-1791, the dial signed Lépine Her. du Roy, Place de Louis X4, the movement signed Lepine Hger. de Roy A Paris, No 4258

the case in the form of an ormolu and patinated bronze draped casket carried by two patinated bronze figures of Vestal virgins and surmounted by an ormolu and patinated bronze flaming tripod brazier flanked by ormolu tazze (one of a later date) cast with satyr masks, raised on a shaped white marble base centered by an ormolu frieze cast with putti and decorated with ormolu and patinated bronze plaques depicting winged figures, supported by four patinated bronze figures of reclining lions resting on a white marble slab raised on circular ormolu feet.

Sotheby's London, June 21, 1988, lot 19

With minor rubbing and surface dirt to patinated bronze. Ormolu very fniely chased and gilt with some minor rubbing, traces of surface dirt and oxidation. One tazza upon case is later, probably to replace a ewer present in other clocks of this model. The dial with small chip to edge at right side and very light surface dirt. Marble with minor chips, slight cracking, abrasions and light surface dirt. In good overall condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The inventory prepared in 1793 of the clocks belonging to Marie Antoinette lists a clock of this model mounted with Sèvres porcelain plaques. Delivered to the Queen for her boudoir at the Château de Saint-Cloud by the marchand-mercier Dominique Daguerre in 1788, it is now in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris. 

Daguerre probably owned the model for this clock as it is listed in the inventory following his death: "X une autre pendule dite les porteuses mouvement ajusté dans une espece de brancart surmonté d'un petit autel le tout en bronze doré au mat et porté par deux figures de femmes en bronze de couleur antique avec socle de marbre blanc à bas relief porté par quatre roues en bronze noir et sur double socle en marbre bleu turquin."

The clock's attribution to Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843) is confirmed by Alvar González-Palacios in his article published in the Connaissance des Arts (September 1976, p. 11-13). González-Palacios cites Pierre Verlet, who discovered documents from the Sèvres manufactory from 1788 which show that the abovementioned porcelain mounts for Marie-Antoinette's clock were provided by Thomire that year. Furthermore, González-Palacios also provides examples of pieces of highly comparable form or details that have been signed by the celebrated bronzeur-fondeur, including a clock from the British Embassy in Paris, formerly in the collection of Pauline Bonaparte-Borghese. It seems that all known models of this clock, despite the variations in detail, must have been executed by Thomire.

The inspiration for the clock's design came from an engraving after Hubert Robert that was published in 1771-1773 in the "Recueil des griffonis" by the Abbé de Saint –Non. The image possibly reached Thomire through the work of Jean Démosthène Dugourc (1749-1825), one of the most famous French draughtsmen working in ornamental design in the second half of the eighteenth century, who is known to have completed a design in 1790 for a clock based on Robert's engraving.

No clock numbered 4258 is mentioned in the appendix of Adolphe Chapiro's book entitled Jean-Antoine Lépine horloger (1720-1814) that lists and dates many of Lépine's clocks. However, the signature on the dial helps in determining the date of this lot: the inscription Lépine Her. du Roy, Place de Louis X4 indicates that the clock must have been executed prior to 1793, when Place Louis XIV was officially renamed Place des Victoires-Nationaux.

The celebrated "negress head clock" by Lépine in the Royal Collection, Buckingham Palace, is dated June 1790 on the dial and numbered 4193.  Purchased by the Prince Regent, later George IV, in 1790, it is illustrated J. Harris et al., Buckingham Palace, New York, 1968, p. 160.

Other clocks of this model include one in the Minneapolis Institute of Art, sold Sotheby's Monaco, February 7, 1982, lot 366, one formerly in the collection of Léon Levy, sold Sotheby's Paris, October 2, 2008, lot 62, and one in El Museo Nacional des Artes Decorativas, Madrid which is fitted with a movement by F.L. Godon, clockmaker to the King of Spain.