A rare paste-decorated gilt-bronze coach clock, Qing dynasty, 18th - 19th century

Collection of Jim Cipra.

Over the course of the Qing dynasty, as links between the imperial court and European markets grew, the demand for European-made clocks, watches and automatons increased exponentially. Alongside imported specimens, Chinese craftsmen began to make clocks and watches in the European style to satiate demand, and the present clock, with the spurious name incised to the movement, appears to be just such an example. Richly gilt and with paste ‘jewels’ after the European manner, the current clock demonstrates the explosion in interest for European mechanical objects, as well as the ingenuity of Chinese craftsmen in imitating that distinctly European tradition.