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Lot Essay
The plaque to the clock identifies this garniture as a gift from King Leopold II of Belgium to his Aide-de-Camp, Raymond, Comte de Chastel-Andelot (1852-1941). As sole heir to his cousin the Comte Léon d'Andelot, Raymond inherited his title and by royal authority on 14 April 1876 joined the names of Chastel and Andelot. He had a distinguished military career as Captain of the 4th Lancers, being made Colonel in 1904 and Major General, aide-de-camp to the King in 1908, and received many foreign and domestic decorations including Grand Officier de Saint-Grégoire-le-Grand and the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Spain. The Comte de Chastel-Andelot married Hélène Louisa Pandin de Narcillac in 1884 and it is therefore likely that this garniture was their wedding gift from King Leopold II.
Established by Jean-François Denière in 1804, by the time his son Guillaume took over in 1844, Denière & fils were producing a variety of high quality decorative bronzes from workshops at 9, rue d'Orléans au Marais and had a magasin de bronze et dorures, at 15 rue Vivienne, Paris. Awarded fornisseurs de Roi, Denière supplied various objets d'art to Napoleon III at the Tuileries including two pairs of 'Three Graces' candelabra for the Palais-Royal service in 1854 and '55 (see M.F. Dupuy-Baylet, Les bronzes du mobilier national 1800-1870 - L'heure, le feu, la lumière, Paris, 2010, no. 166, pp. 304-5). In addition to supplying important commissions to the Mobilier de la Couronne, Deniére's customers included Count Pavel Dmitrievich Kiseleff, the Russian Ambassador, Said Pasha, the viceroy of Egypt and, as testified by the present garniture, King Leopold II of Belgium.
Following Guillaume Denière's death the firm closed and six sales of stock were held between February and December 1903. The model for this clock, described as 'pendule à cage', was offered at the third sale held between 20th and 22nd October 1903 and bought by François Linke. Designed to have either porcelain or, as here, glazed front and sides, Linke subsequently produced it in two sizes. A clock of this model by Linke sold 'Property from a Private European Collection' Christie's, London, 23 September 2010, lot 247 (£25,000) and Payne illustrates two examples: one from a private collection along with its accompanying candelabra, the other visible in a contemporary black and white photograph of Linke's Faubourg St-Antoine showrooms (C. Payne, François Linke, 1855-1946, The Belle Epoque of French Furniture, Woodbridge, 2003. pp. 172-3, pl. 187 and p. 463, pl. 552).
Established by Jean-François Denière in 1804, by the time his son Guillaume took over in 1844, Denière & fils were producing a variety of high quality decorative bronzes from workshops at 9, rue d'Orléans au Marais and had a magasin de bronze et dorures, at 15 rue Vivienne, Paris. Awarded fornisseurs de Roi, Denière supplied various objets d'art to Napoleon III at the Tuileries including two pairs of 'Three Graces' candelabra for the Palais-Royal service in 1854 and '55 (see M.F. Dupuy-Baylet, Les bronzes du mobilier national 1800-1870 - L'heure, le feu, la lumière, Paris, 2010, no. 166, pp. 304-5). In addition to supplying important commissions to the Mobilier de la Couronne, Deniére's customers included Count Pavel Dmitrievich Kiseleff, the Russian Ambassador, Said Pasha, the viceroy of Egypt and, as testified by the present garniture, King Leopold II of Belgium.
Following Guillaume Denière's death the firm closed and six sales of stock were held between February and December 1903. The model for this clock, described as 'pendule à cage', was offered at the third sale held between 20th and 22nd October 1903 and bought by François Linke. Designed to have either porcelain or, as here, glazed front and sides, Linke subsequently produced it in two sizes. A clock of this model by Linke sold 'Property from a Private European Collection' Christie's, London, 23 September 2010, lot 247 (£25,000) and Payne illustrates two examples: one from a private collection along with its accompanying candelabra, the other visible in a contemporary black and white photograph of Linke's Faubourg St-Antoine showrooms (C. Payne, François Linke, 1855-1946, The Belle Epoque of French Furniture, Woodbridge, 2003. pp. 172-3, pl. 187 and p. 463, pl. 552).