An ‘industrial’ clock by André Romain Guilmet took £9500 against an estimate of £3500-4500.
Over his career the Frenchman produced both novelty and mystery clocks as well as being an inventor. A superb mystery clock by him is held in the British Museum, formerly part of the famed Ilbert collection. The Guilmet sold by Dreweatts was a French gilt, patinated and silvered brass novelty ‘quarterdeck’ mantel clock with an eight-day, going-striking movement.
Guilmet’s industrial-themed clocks, the epitome of Victorian ‘progress’, featured boats, steam hammers, boilers, windmills, lighthouses, locomotives and automobiles – some of them priced well into five figures.
Specialist Leighton Gillibrand described this quarterdeck model as “a good example from this ever-popular series”. A similar lot was sold by Dreweatts in September 2015 for £6500.
Viennese silver and enamel sleigh clock c.1880 – £4500 at Dreweatts.
Making a dash was an Austrian silver-gilt and enamelled sleigh timepiece c.1880. It was pulled along by two overseas internet bidders, selling for £4500 (estimate £1500-2000).
Possibly made for the Russian market, the sleigh has a maker’s mark of SG possibly for Simon Grimwald, Vienna with the timepiece a Swiss ‘five bar’ watch type movement.
