Majestic & Substantial 1858 French Drumhead Striking Mantel Clock in Black Slate with Rouge Marble

A majestic French drumhead striking mantel clock of substantial proportion, in polished black slate and variegated rouge / white marble. The clock was produced by famous clockmakers Vincenti et Cie. (‘and Co,’) of Montbéliard, France, whilst the clocks outstanding hand-crafted case embellishment was modelled (probably under commission), by world-renowned French sculptural artist Gerard Schmoll of Paris. • Magnificent and imposing black slate and marble architectural design. • Fluted drumhead, supported by fluted and sloping scroll shaped sides, which sit majestically on their well-balanced two-layered plinth. • Exuberantly finished slate rendering, with variegated rouge and white marbled breakfront layered garniture, including a fluted panel base. • Stunning and opulent two-piece brass and black enamelled dial with gold-plated Roman numerals and visually impressive jewelled Brocot escapement. • Original pair of gold-plated Straight Breguet hands secured with a pinned collet. • Frontal hinged dial door with thick bevelled glaze, mounted in a solid brass bezel. • Hinged rear door with thick bevelled glaze, mounted in a solid brass bezel. • Very high-quality 8-day French Vincenti and Co. engineered circular movement, striking the hours and half-hours on a polished nickel 'ting' bell. • The famous trade marks of makers ‘Vincenti and Co.’ and modeller ‘Gerard Schmoll’, are both stamped into the movement backplate. • Comes with its original numbered brass pendulum and an authentic period winding key. The clock was produced, during the creative and hugely innovative mid-19th Century ‘Arts and Crafts’ period; an era of French renaissance in culture, style, art and architecture, established initially in the region, during the 14th to 16th Centuries, and Vincenti and Co., were one of France’s foremost clockmaking firms of the mid/late 1800s. The company was formed by Master Horologist Jean Giovanni Vincenti in 1823 and taken over by another famous horologist Jean ‘Albert’ Roux in 1829. In 1855, the company won a prestigious medal at the world “Expo Universelle, Paris”, for its clockmaking excellence, thus afforded them the privilege of placing a ‘Medaille d'Argent’ 1855’ stamp, on their movements thereafter. This famous horological stamp can also be seen embossed into the backplate of this clock’s movement. A truly outstanding and All-Original French striking mantel clock of the very highest order…