First Empire table clock. France, ca. 1810–1815.

First Empire table clock. France, ca. 1810–1815.
“Love Triumphs Over Time.”
Mercury-gilded bronze.
White enamel dial with Roman numerals for the hours and Arabic numerals for the minutes, signed “Chomifsen à Paris.”
Mechanical movement from the Empire period.
It has a small chip in the dial and patina on the gilding, consistent with its age.
Measurements: 48 x 35 x 13 cm.

This sumptuous clock depicts an allegory whose theme is particularly fitting for an object designed to measure the passage of time. On the case stands the winged figure of Cupid, depicted as a young man of heroic proportions, accompanied by his bow and quiver and also holding a sickle, the traditional attribute of Time. The inclusion of this latter element transforms the scene into a symbolic affirmation of love’s triumph over the passage of time—a theme that has been widely explored in French clockmaking. The Louvre houses several examples in which the figure of Cupid is similarly integrated into complex allegorical programs related to time.

The composition is completed by a stepped architectural base profusely ornamented with classically inspired reliefs, mythological figures, winged beings, crowns, and palmettes. Given its chronology, symmetrical structure, and the predominance of a Greco-Roman repertoire rendered with monumental solemnity, the piece is fully in keeping with the Empire style that developed in France during the reign of Napoleon I. The modeling of the main figure and the meticulous rendering of the wings, hair, and drapery also reflect the sumptuous taste of early-19th-century Parisian bronze casting, when the table clock took on a distinctly sculptural and decorative character.