A good mid 19th century Continental rosewood grande sonnerie striking and repeating Vienna regulatorthe gong block stamped Ditmair
the case surmounted by C-scroll and floral swag cresting above a sharply moulded top with three glazed sides and carved floral corners, the white enamel dial with black Roman chapter ring and elegant steel beetle and poker hands, encircled by a cast brass piecrust bezel, the weight-driven triple barrel gut line movement with anchor escapement and artistically pierced pulleys, striking and repeating the quarters and hours on two hammers and two gongs, with three brass-cased weights and wood rod pendulum, with winding key and case key, 129cms highFootnotesThis clock is a good example of a Late Biedermeier Vienna regulator. The Biedermeier era was an aesthetic movement in Central Europe between 1815-1848, which embraced middle-class, domestic tableaus, characterised by simplicity of style and an emphasis on the natural world for decorative inspiration. This not only applied to paintings, but music and furniture as well. The elaborate bezel, delicate hands, and straight-sided pastoral-inspired carved case is all typical of Vienna regulators from this period, specifically the later period, around 1840.
No reference can be found to the 'Ditmair' stamped on the gong block. It is not uncommon for Vienna regulators of this period to be unsigned, and it is possible that Ditmair was a gong manufacturer, rather then a horologist. Vienna's trades at this time were fiercely regulated; an entire guild was devoted strictly to clock hands, and it was said that clockmakers were banned from making their own cases until 1860, this procedure until that point being controlled by a separate guild. It is interesting to note that another Austrian grand-sonnerie clock, this one a wood mantel clock, is also stamped 'Ditmair' on the gong base, see MÖBELMUSEUM WIEN (2022) Biedermeier and Empire. Available at: https://www.moebelmuseumwien.at/en/about-the-museum/the-collections/biedermeier-and-empire
A good mid 19th century Continental rosewood grande sonnerie striking and repeating Vienna regulatorthe gong block stamped Ditmair
the case surmounted by C-scroll and floral swag cresting above a sharply moulded top with three glazed sides and carved floral corners, the white enamel dial with black Roman chapter ring and elegant steel beetle and poker hands, encircled by a cast brass piecrust bezel, the weight-driven triple barrel gut line movement with anchor escapement and artistically pierced pulleys, striking and repeating the quarters and hours on two hammers and two gongs, with three brass-cased weights and wood rod pendulum, with winding key and case key, 129cms highFootnotesThis clock is a good example of a Late Biedermeier Vienna regulator. The Biedermeier era was an aesthetic movement in Central Europe between 1815-1848, which embraced middle-class, domestic tableaus, characterised by simplicity of style and an emphasis on the natural world for decorative inspiration. This not only applied to paintings, but music and furniture as well. The elaborate bezel, delicate hands, and straight-sided pastoral-inspired carved case is all typical of Vienna regulators from this period, specifically the later period, around 1840.
No reference can be found to the 'Ditmair' stamped on the gong block. It is not uncommon for Vienna regulators of this period to be unsigned, and it is possible that Ditmair was a gong manufacturer, rather then a horologist. Vienna's trades at this time were fiercely regulated; an entire guild was devoted strictly to clock hands, and it was said that clockmakers were banned from making their own cases until 1860, this procedure until that point being controlled by a separate guild. It is interesting to note that another Austrian grand-sonnerie clock, this one a wood mantel clock, is also stamped 'Ditmair' on the gong base, see MÖBELMUSEUM WIEN (2022) Biedermeier and Empire. Available at: https://www.moebelmuseumwien.at/en/about-the-museum/the-collections/biedermeier-and-empire
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
