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A 19th century Austrian musical picture clock depicting a copy of Christian Ruben's 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America' image 1
A 19th century Austrian musical picture clock depicting a copy of Christian Ruben's 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America' image 2
A 19th century Austrian musical picture clock depicting a copy of Christian Ruben's 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America' image 3
Lot 277

A 19th century Austrian musical picture clock depicting a copy of Christian Ruben's 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America'

22 November – 9 December 2024, 12:00 GMT
Online, London, New Bond Street

Sold for £2,176 inc. premium

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A 19th century Austrian musical picture clock depicting a copy of Christian Ruben's 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America'

The elaborate gilt frame surmounted by a white enamel clock dial with Roman numerals and blued steel hands surrounded by an elaborately decorated gilt brass bezel. The three train quarter chiming movement with silk suspension chiming on a pair of blued steel gongs and a separate music box activated on the hours in the base. Together with two winding keys.
93cms high (93ichs)

Footnotes

Christian Ruben's painting 'Christopher Columbus Discovers America' (completed in 1846) reflects the fascination with Columbus's voyages that permeated 19th-century European art and culture. This work highlights Ruben's admiration for Columbus as an emblem of exploration and modernity. Ruben began the painting in Munich in 1840 and continued working on it during his time in Rome. Upon completing the piece in Prague after six years, its exhibition garnered significant acclaim from art critics, leading to multiple reproductions and inspiring similar works. The painting's impact was international, even leading the Philadelphia City Council in the United States to commission a copy, signifying Columbus's symbolic importance across continents.

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