A stunning four glass table 'regulator' in a giant gilded Gorge case, the two week duration movement has a visible coupe perdu escapement, one in which there is constant friction and which although 'ticking' every half a second actually only moves the sweep second hand every other beat therefore making it true 'seconds', along with a gridiron compensating pendulum and strikes the hours and half hours on a bell, with heavy bulbous plate pillars. Signed on the backplate with the makers’ name and serial number, ‘Le Roy a Paris No. 7012’ along with the trademark of the maker of the roulant blanc 'Honore Pons', with the two-piece white enamel dial having Leroy’s Paris and London retail addresses, 'Le Roy and Fils, Pals Royale, Gie. Montpensier 13-15, Paris' and '296, Regent Street, London' along with black Roman hour numerals and blued steel 'moon' hands. The case retains it’s original gilding.
* Basile Charles Le Roy was the Master Clockmaker to Napolean & along with his son Charles-Louis were clockmaker’s to the Princess Pauline and the Duke de Bourbon. Examples of their work are in all the major collections as well in the Ministere de la Guerre, Paris. The Maison de Le Roy was founded in 1785 at Palais Royal & continued until the death of Charles at Versailles in 1865.
* Honoré Pons is one of the most well known and best maker's of French clock movements as well as being the person who it is said saved the French clock industry in the early 1800's. In 1806 the French Minister of the Interior brought Pons to Saint-Nicolas-d'Ailermont from Paris to reorganise the clock industry which was dying on it's feet. The Tribune choronmetrique states that small clocks were being made there 'badly enough' but that after his arrival everything changed and that it's to him that France owed her important export trade in clocks. The Tribune goes on to say that '..the movements made under his control since 1830 have been constantly improved, the tooth-forms which he introduced being particularly exact and even ordinary clocks made under his direction well ahead, as usual, of those made by others...' He won Silver Medals for his work in 1819 and 1823 and the Gold Medal in 1834. He invented numerous forms of of mechanisms for making various clock parts as well as inventing different forms of escapements etc. In recognition for his services to French horology he received one of France's highest honours, the Legion d'Honneur. He retired after 1844, probably 1847, with the business being continued by Delepine. (For further reading see Tardy, Dictionnaire des Horlogers Francais)
The premises of Le Roy et Fils at 13 - 15 Galerie Montpensier, Paris in 2005
Height: 18 inches.
Price: £8,200.00