Louis MAJORELLE (1859-1926) - Lot 90

Louis MAJORELLE (1859-1926) Floor clock, mahogany and gilt bronze, circa 1910. Total height: 227 cm; max. width at top: 46 cm - width at floor: 42 cm; max. depth at floor: 35.5 cm. The clock's structure is in solid molded red mahogany, recessed in the center, with a front column extending from the foot, encompassing an intermediate shelf and supporting the clock case. The clock case opens with a flap on the right side. The panels on the back are flush. There is a small gap of a few millimeters on the inside of the lower column insertion between the shelf and the clock case. There is a slight narrowing in the left side panel of the clock case, allowing a daylight to pass through. The gilded bronzes with orchids are openwork and inserted into the grooves of the mahogany uprights. They are in good condition, with no screws missing or missing, and do not appear to have been dismantled or restored. Their unrestored gilding is partly faded. Only two elements run across the entire front face from bottom to top. The lower bronze starts from the front foot, forming a hoof with no ground surface. It rises, emitting two divergent lateral stems ending in flower buds, then spreads out into an orchid flower on the shoulder at the junction of the column with the shelf in a heart-shaped bowl. The upper bronze starts behind the upper petal of the lower bonze, then runs up the column in a thin stem, splits in two to surround the dial, spreading and branching out on the sides of the clock case, then supports the cornice and ends in drooping flower buds. The dial is in copper or brass repoussé and gilded, executed in Majorelle's workshops, with two floral bud decorations, one peripheral and the other circular and central. The Arabic numerals are in the Art Nouveau style, with a uniform curvilinear design that can be varied. The hands with their floral bud motif are also cut from sheet metal, then chased and gilded. The back panel features four screwed panels. The top panel (for the clock case) was replaced by a solid fir plank. Majorelle's signature was probably on this top panel, as it is on other parquet clocks. The other three panels are veneered, with veneer jumps at the top screws of the upper panel. On the upper face of the clock case, the panel has been changed for a solid fir plank. On the inside of the clock case, a reinforcing strip has been fitted on the left-hand side, as well as a triangular reinforcement behind the dial on the top left-hand side. The clock mechanism is old, from the MFC brand (manufacturer's logo on the plate), without balance, half-hour striking on a circular gong, in need of overhaul. The key is in the clock case. Expert : Frédéric DESCOUTURELLE