20179M-001

A trip to Palermo This unique piece in Grand Feu cloisonné enamel achieves the technical feat of offering two visual planes, thereby giving a sense of depth to the scene. The first plane consists of the images of the orange trees; the second, the view of the city of Palermo in miniature painting on enamel. To outline the trees and the fruit the enameller used about 15 m of gold wire (~26.8 g). The vibrant tints required to render all the nuances of the orange trees called for a remarkably rich palette of transparent, opalescent and opaque enamels in 49 colors. Miniature painting on enamel in a further 4 to 5 pastel colors lent a touch of softness to the decoration. This contrast allowed the enameller to convey the distance between the two planes, notably by introducing blurring and shading effects, a mark of great technical prowess. Each enameled plate underwent from 9 to 11 firings at temperatures between 900°C and 910°C. The hour circle, inspired by the clock on a Sicilian church, presents applied Roman numerals transfer-printed in blue and pierced blue-lacquered leaf-shaped hands centering a metallic ornament cut out to represent the sun. This piece is powered by the caliber 17’’’ PEND mechanical movement rewound by an electric motor.