Cartier, Paris

the circular dial applied with black Arabic numerals and millegrain set rose diamond hands, to rectangular pink guilloché enamel case and carved agate foot, case measuring approximately 55 x 42 x 37mm, dial signed Cartier, with winding key, fitted case stamped Cartier Paris

Cf: Jader Barracca, Giampiero Negretti and Franco Nencini, Le Temps de Cartier, Milan, 1989, pp.40-41, 58-59 and 108 for examples of similar desk clocks by Cartier.

Please note that the movement has not been tested for the accuracy of its time keeping and therefore a service should be carried out in the near future at the buyer's expense. Movement currently running. Mounted in silver and enamel, case with fine abrasions to enamel commensurate with age and wear, small bruise to enamel on the reverse and very small chips to white enamel line decoration on the corners of the case. Left hand onyx foot to the reverse with small chip and fracture to the onyx. leather case with scuffs and wear commensurate with age and wear.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Please note that colour, clarity and weight of gemstones are statements of opinion only and not statements of fact by Sotheby's. We do not guarantee, and are not responsible for any certificate from a gemological laboratory that may accompany the property. We do not guarantee that watches are in working order. 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue, in particular to the Notice regarding the treatment and condition of gemstones and to the Notice regarding import of Burmese jadeite and rubies into the US.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

An iconic piece of Cartier’s early 20^th century design, this clock with its rich, opalescent enamel work represents the firm’s drive at the height of the Belle Époque to produce pieces, particularly objects and vertu, to compete with the workshops of Moscow and St. Petersburg. Objects in the revived Louis XVI style and the associated technique of fine ‘guilloché’ enamelling, in which layers of translucent enamel are applied to an intricately worked metal surface, had been most famously perfected by Fabergé earlier. In what might be considered an attempt to re-appropriate an originally French style, Cartier began by employing the Yahr workshops in Moscow, but soon found Parisians capable of undertaking this highly skilled work. This recreation of the Fabergé style reached its peak in 1908, when Cartier presented Tsar Nicholas the II with a gem set and enamel clock in the shape of an Easter egg. Cartier’s table clocks, in similar fashion, were to become widely popular as gifts, particularly in Edwardian England where they found favour with figures such as Princess Zenaïde Yousssopov and Edward VII himself. The dating of comparable pieces, including a desk set presented at the recent exhibition, ‘Cartier: Le style et l’histoire’, at the Grand Palais in Paris (Cat. No. 90), suggests that this clock is likely to have been produced around the time of Winston and Clementine's marriage and may have been a generous gift to the couple.