The restoration of five Boulle marquetry clocks, begun a few months ago, is now complete. Here is a Regency clock and its console, inlaid with brown tortoiseshell and brass on an oak frame.
The Measurement of Time
Since time immemorial, humankind has sought to measure time. First came the gnomon, a simple stick planted in the ground, the ancestor of the sundial. Then came the clepsydra, where water flows, and later the hourglass, based on the same principle. Through these methods, people organized their social, religious, and economic lives. In the West, however, the first clock didn't appear until the 14th century. Without a dial or hands, it struck the hours using a foliot escapement, powered by a weight.
During the Renaissance, a spring replaced the weight. Clocks were then improved and made smaller: they were placed on tables and wound with a key. Shortly before his death, Galileo discovered the principle of pendulum oscillation, but was unable to apply it. It was only in the 17th century that the Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens He perfected his discoveries. Thus, in 1657, he had the first pendulum clock built. More precise and more reliable, this mechanism quickly spread throughout Europe. In fact, its success was such that the word "pendulum" eventually replaced "clock".
Description
The piece shown is an alcove cartel clock, composed of three distinct parts:
- The capital, the upper part surmounted by a bronze headdress and used to hold the two stamps.
- The frame, the intermediate part housing the dial and the movement, is richly decorated with Boulle marquetry and gilded and chiseled bronzes.
- The console, or "lamp base," serves as the wall mounting point. The frame and the capital rest upon it. It is also decorated with marquetry and bronze.
The origin of the cartel:
Cartels appeared in the 18th century. The origin of the name Cartel comes from the Italian "carteglio" which represents the decoration surrounding the dial of a clock and "cartella" which designates the uprights supporting the clock.
In France, the cartel originally referred to a rolled-up letter used as a challenge to a duel, exchanged between knights. This card gave its name to the curved and tormented decorative shapes, and subsequently to the clocks that feature them.
The term eventually evolved to refer to all clocks resting on a console fixed to the wall.
State of affairs report
The structure of the piece is sound, as are those of the console and the capital. Only the door has a crack running its entire length. The majority of the work will therefore focus on the marquetry. Indeed, some brass pieces are missing, and others have been filled with gilt putty. Furthermore, the veneers are lifting, and the unstable pieces detach easily.
The Restoration
The restoration therefore consisted of reattaching all the elements of the cartel clock, both structural and plated. All the gluing was done under vacuum. Then we replaced the missing brass and tortoiseshell pieces, also using fish glue.
Finally, Roubo putty was used to fill the joints of the saw cuts, before a thin coat of colorless pad varnish was applied.
