20183M-001

A passion for philately Old Italian postage stamps, with their images of monumental fountains, inspired this unique piece, which also pays tribute to the peninsula’s great explorers. The fountains and the names of the cities featuring on the clock’s side panels were first engraved by hand, before being coated with translucent brown enamels in a variety of shades. For the stamps and the map of Italy on the dome, the enameller worked with Grand Feu cloisonné enamel, first laying down about 17.02 m of gold wire (~31.82 g). To bring these scenes to life he then introduced a palette of transparent, opalescent and semi-opaque enamels in 26 colors, followed by 3 colors of miniature painting on enamel to lend a striking realism to the scene. Gold leaf embedded beneath translucent enamel adds majesty to the frames of the little fountain vignettes. On the dome, he located the 3 cities in which the fountains are situated with 3 star-shaped spangles or paillons in yellow gold. He then enriched the scene with a compass rose fashioned in gold leaf beneath translucent enamel according to the technique of paillonné enameling, to honor history’s great Italian explorers. Each enameled plate underwent from 8 to 13 firings at temperatures ranging from 800°C to 830°C. An hour circle in marble, its engraved Roman numerals adorned with blue lacquer, frames gilt trapeze-type hands. It surrounds a dial center presenting a wavy sunburst motif in hand-executed guilloché, shining through translucent blue enamel. The tritons and volutes in cloisonné enamel adorning the rim of the dial reproduce the sculpted ornaments typical of the fountains of that period. The clock pillars drew inspiration from Roman columns. This piece is powered by the caliber 17’’’ PEND mechanical movement rewound by an electric motor.