Items with musical mechanism and automaton

Singing bird box

    Singing bird box

    Western Europe

    20

    Silver, ivory, brass, steel, mother of pearl, wood; chasing, parfling, sawing, painting

    13 x 9 x 5.7 cm, 566 gr

    German Assay marks on the plinth welt: half moon, a crown and silver alloy "800"; master's mark: Latin letter "B" in the circle with the crown

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    Singing bird box in rectangular case on a low cast silver plinth, decorated with floral ornament along the perimeter. The upper side is silver with chased ornament. Encrusted panels of mother-of-pearl and ivory on black background, decorated with painted images of birds and flowers are on lateral sides. Silver oval hinged lid is in the center of the top panel. A pearl plate with painted miniature depicting a girl in red dress with a squirrel in her hands on a translucent golden background is on the lid upper side. The inner lid surface is mirror-polished. The lid automatically opens when the movement is activated. A miniature bird in painted feathers from beneath. It turns on the spot, flaps its wings, opens and locks the beak. The sound movement imitates the bird’s chirping. At the end of the program, the bird is hidden under the openwork silver lattice and the lid is lowered.

    A rod with a figured head - a switch of the singing bird movement is on the right lateral side. The box wooden bottom is covered with an ivory plate with a keyhole.

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    Инв.2540/ДПИ