The Winged Genie dictating to the Republic. Revolutionary pe - Lot 151

The Winged Genie dictating to the Republic. Revolutionary period. Historic gilded bronze and white marble clock depicting "Le Génie ailé" (The Winged Genie) dictating to the Republic, represented by a female figure holding a lictor beam, the principles of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, as well as those of the First French Constitution of 1791. The lictor beam, a revolutionary symbol referring to the Roman Republic, represents the union and strength of French citizens united in defense of Liberty. They stand on a base featuring a bas-relief of David's "Jeu de Paume Oath", 1791-1792. Paris. Revolutionary period. Circa 1791. H_ 47 cm W_50 cm D_17 cm Provenance: Collection of Monsieur D. M - Manoir de C Franche-Conté. The dial still uses the Gregorian calendar (12 hours) before the introduction of the revolutionary decimal calendar (10 hours) in 1792. It does not feature a watchmaker's signature as previously imposed by the guild, since the Le Chapelier law of June 14, 1791 dissolved guilds. This unique and hitherto unpublished model is certainly a special order. On June 20, 1789, 630 representatives of the clergy, the nobility and the Third Estate swore "an oath never to separate and to join together wherever circumstances demand until the Constitution of the Kingdom is established and consolidated on solid foundations". The French Revolution was launched by the "Oath of the Jeu de Paume at Versailles", depicted by the official painter Jacques Louis David in his drawings and paintings at the Musée Carnavalet, the Musée de l'Histoire de Paris and the Château de Versailles. FIG. 1 LE SERMENT DU JEU DE PAUME, JUNE 20, 1789. Jacques - Louis DAVID. Between 1791 and 1792. Pen, ink, wash and white highlights on pencil on paper. This unfinished painting was commissioned by the Société des Amis de la Constitution. Expert : Stéphane Pépe