Mantel clock, Clytia & sunflower, gilt bronze attributed to C. Galle, Paris c. 1810 

French sculptural mantel clock, Clytia with sunflower, gilt bronze attributed to Claude Galle, Paris, Empire period, c. 1810 

Made entirely of finely chased and gilt bronze, this spectacular clock has a gilt metal chapter ring with Roman numeral hours; its hour and minute hands are of blued steel. It is fitted within a naturalistic sunflower whose petals are delicately arranged in two rows. The flower is held by a finely sculpted standing female figure; she is wearing a long belted toga whose clinging folds accentuate her sensuality. Her hair is arranged in a bun and her expressive face is treated in the French Neoclassical tradition, which was in turn directly influenced by antique Greco-Roman sculpture. She gracefully holds the sunflower upright so that it does not bend and break under its own weight. The tall cylindrical base is decorated with low-relief flaming torches linked by flower and leaf garlands; it is highlighted by two laurel toruses, one with stylised flower motifs and the other chased with oak leaves and acorns. An octagonal plinth supports the composition. 

Clytia (or Clytie) was a water nymph, daughter of Oceanus and Tethys in Greek mythology. The god Apollo fell in love with her but abandoned her for the nymph Leucothea. Clytia then sat on a rock for nine days, following Apollo—who personified the sun—across the sky, until she was transformed into a sunflower.
Clock with 8 day movement, striking hours and half hour on a bell. Height 92 cm;  Width 35 cm. Price on request.

Claude Galle (1759 - 1815)

One of the foremost bronziers and fondeur-ciseleurs of the late Louis XVI and Empire periods, Claude Galle was born at Villepreux near Versailles. He served his apprenticeship in Paris under the fondeur Pierre Foy. In 1786 he became a maitre-fondeur. After the death of Pierre Foy, Galle took over his workshop, employing over time approximately 400. Galle collaborated with many excellent artisans, including Pierre-Philippe Thomire, and furnished the majority of the furnishing bronzes for the Château de Fontainebleau during the Empire. He received many other Imperial commissions. Galle’s business was continued by his son after his death by his son, Gérard-Jean Galle (1788-1846). Today his work may be found in the world’s most important museums and collections, under with the Musée National du Château de Malmaison, the Musée Marmottan in Paris, the Museo de Reloges at Jerez de la Frontera, the Residenz in Munich, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.