Gavin Douglas Fine Antiques

Gavin Douglas Fine Antiques Fine Antique Clocks and Decorative Gilt Bronze

✨ A touch of Swiss elegance from the golden age of decorative timepieces.This exquisite guilloché enamel clock, retailed...
10/06/2026

✨ A touch of Swiss elegance from the golden age of decorative timepieces.

This exquisite guilloché enamel clock, retailed by Gubelin of Lucerne, perfectly captures the sophisticated artistry of the early twentieth century. The beautifully engine-turned enamel case, finished in a delicate turquoise hue, is adorned with finely engraved gilt decoration, framing a charming hand-painted landscape dial.

The dial itself is a miniature work of art, depicting a solitary tree against distant mountains, with the hours arranged amongst the branches in a wonderfully imaginative design. As much a decorative object as a timekeeper, it reflects a period when clocks were created to delight the eye as much as serve a practical purpose.

Renowned for their association with fine watches, jewellery and luxury objets d'art, Gubelin retailed some of the most elegant Swiss creations of the era. Pieces such as this embody the combination of technical craftsmanship and artistic refinement for which the firm became celebrated.
A rare and highly decorative addition to any collection of clocks, enamels, or fine twentieth-century design.

🦁 The King of Beasts Keeping Time 🦁Fresh to the collection, this superb Charles X period ormolu mantel clock dates to ar...
06/06/2026

🦁 The King of Beasts Keeping Time 🦁

Fresh to the collection, this superb Charles X period ormolu mantel clock dates to around 1830 and perfectly captures the confidence and grandeur of early 19th-century French bronze work.

Crowned by a beautifully sculpted reclining lion – the timeless symbol of strength, courage and authority – the case is of unusually heavy and dense construction, with every element displaying the quality one hopes to find in the finest Parisian production. The rich original gilding survives remarkably well, highlighting the crisp detail of the casting and the skill of the graveur responsible for the final chasing and finishing.

The elegant gilt bronze dial is complemented by a particularly attractive pair of finely pierced blued steel hands of an early design, while behind lies an eight-day silk suspension movement signed by Pons and dated 1827. The movement strikes the hours and half-hours on a bell by means of a countwheel, preserving the traditional techniques of the period.

It is always a pleasure to find a clock that remains so honest and untouched. Nearly two centuries after it left the workshop, the original ormolu still possesses a warmth and depth that simply cannot be replicated.
A wonderful survivor from the closing years of the Bourbon Restoration and an excellent example of the quality achieved by the great Parisian bronziers of the Charles X era.

🇫🇷 Paris, circa 1830
⏰ Signed Pons, 1827
🦁 Original ormolu throughout

A flash of Edwardian luxury 💙This exquisite four-bottle scent set, hallmarked London 1913, combines crystal, silver and ...
04/06/2026

A flash of Edwardian luxury 💙

This exquisite four-bottle scent set, hallmarked London 1913, combines crystal, silver and vibrant royal blue guilloché enamel in a design that is as striking today as it was over a century ago.
Originally intended for the finest dressing tables and travelling vanities, each faceted bottle retains its original stopper and sits within a beautifully crafted silver frame with swing handle.
A wonderful reminder that even everyday necessities were once transformed into objects of beauty.

✨ A jewel of the Belle Époque ✨Imagine this exquisite little vase clock gracing the salon of a grand French château, qui...
03/06/2026

✨ A jewel of the Belle Époque ✨
Imagine this exquisite little vase clock gracing the salon of a grand French château, quietly marking the passing hours beneath the glow of crystal chandeliers.
Crafted around 1895, this remarkable Napoleon III vase clock combines the finest decorative arts with precision horology. The richly enamelled deep-blue vase is mounted in beautifully chased ormolu signed Eug. Hazard, while the elegant convex porcelain dial bears the prestigious signature Antide Janvier à Paris, one of the great names in French clockmaking.
Despite its delicate appearance, this is no mere ornament. Hidden within is a high-quality 8-day movement, striking the hours and half-hours on a bell — a sophisticated mechanical heart concealed within a work of art.
Pieces such as this perfectly capture the French fascination with transforming everyday objects into expressions of luxury, craftsmanship and ingenuity. More than a clock, it is a miniature masterpiece where sculpture, enamelling and horology meet.
A wonderful reminder that in the finest French interiors, even time itself was displayed with elegance.

“Small enough for a gentleman’s travelling case… refined enough for a Mayfair dressing table. ✨This exquisite Swiss sub ...
27/05/2026

“Small enough for a gentleman’s travelling case… refined enough for a Mayfair dressing table. ✨
This exquisite Swiss sub miniature silver & enamel clock, standing just 5cm high, would once have sat proudly in one of London’s finest ateliers around 1910 — a tiny masterpiece of precision, elegance, and Edwardian luxury. 🇨🇭🇬🇧
Even at this scale, the craftsmanship is remarkable; crisp enamel panels, silver detailing, and a beautifully engineered Swiss movement hidden within a piece scarcely larger than a matchbox.
Proof that in the world of horology, greatness doesn’t always come in grand proportions. ⏱️”

Fresh from the benches of Geneva 🇨🇭⚙️This charming little Juvenia sub-miniature carriage clock looks right at home back ...
26/05/2026

Fresh from the benches of Geneva 🇨🇭⚙️
This charming little Juvenia sub-miniature carriage clock looks right at home back where it all began — deep in the smoky warmth of “La Fabrique”, circa 1915.
Striped blue and white enamel, sterling silver casework, and a beautifully made Swiss movement tucked inside a clock barely larger than a matchbox… proof that the Swiss were masters of miniaturisation long before it became fashionable.
One can almost imagine a watchmaker in La Chaux-de-Fonds carefully fitting the tiny gears by lamplight before sending it off to accompany a glamorous traveller across Europe ✨🕰️

23/05/2026

A jewel of the Jazz Age. ✨
This exquisite sub-miniature silver and enamel desk clock by Juvenia captures the elegance of early 20th-century design in pocket-sized form. Framed with deep cobalt blue enamel borders and centred by a delicate Roman numeral dial, it houses a high quality Swiss-made 8-day movement — remarkable both for its precision and incredibly compact scale.
Swiss, circa 1910 — proof that true luxury needs no grand proportions.

Napoleon may have conquered Europe, but even Emperors need a moment to survey the battlefield.This wonderfully atmospher...
20/05/2026

Napoleon may have conquered Europe, but even Emperors need a moment to survey the battlefield.
This wonderfully atmospheric bronze by Jean-Jacques Pradier captures a young Napoleon standing before his armies in quiet reflection — bicorne tilted low, cloak draped dramatically, as if planning the next campaign before the cannons begin to roar.
Pradier was one of the great sculptors of the French Romantic movement, celebrated for bringing life, emotion and theatrical presence to bronze. Rather than portraying the Emperor in full triumph, this model gives us a far more human Napoleon — thoughtful, ambitious, and almost cinematic in mood.
The rich dark patination pairs beautifully with the warm Sienna marble base, giving the sculpture both strength and elegance. Small in scale perhaps… but with the presence of a monument.
“Soldiers, from the heights of these marble bases…” 🇫🇷⚔️

A striking patinated bronze figure of the Dancing Faun, after the celebrated antique prototype discovered at Excavations...
19/05/2026

A striking patinated bronze figure of the Dancing Faun, after the celebrated antique prototype discovered at Excavations at Pompeii and long associated with the celebrated example in the Uffizi Gallery.
Captured mid-dance with cymbals in hand, the sculpture perfectly conveys the energy, movement and sensuality that made the ancient model one of the most admired classical bronzes of the Grand Tour period. The rich dark patina beautifully highlights the muscular modelling and flowing pose of the figure.
A timeless classical form that still feels remarkably modern today

18/05/2026

A rare and wonderfully imaginative Quarterdeck Industrial clock by Guilmet, Paris, circa 1890.
Capturing the romance of the sea at the height of the Industrial Age, the model takes the form of a ship’s quarterdeck, complete with helmsman at the wheel, deck fittings and maritime detailing. Pieces such as this perfectly embody Guilmet’s fascination with mechanical novelty and sculptural design.
A true conversation piece — somewhere between clock, sculpture and fantasy. ⚓🌊

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