George Washington Mantle Clock
Maker
Jacques Nicholas Pierre François Dubuc
(French, active 1790 - 1830)
CultureFrench
Dateca. 1815-1819
MediumGilded brass, iron, and enamel
DimensionsOverall: 19 1/2 x 14 1/4 x 5 3/4 in. (49.5 x 36.2 x 14.6 cm)
InscribedSigned on enamel face: "Dubuc/Ave Michel-13-Comte N 33/Paris".
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number78.134
Not on view
DescriptionRectangular plinth decorated with leaves and a plaque depicting an officer giving his sword to a man seated on a throne. Mounted on this base is a fully realized figure of George Washington with a scroll in his hand. His arm rests on an oblong clock with a sheath of arrows and other decorative devices. The clock has a banner with the following: "Washington/First in War, First in Peace,/first in the hearts of his countrymen." The clock is surmounted by an eagle with an olive branch in one claw and a sheath of arrows in the other and rests on a plinth inscribed: "E Pluribus Unum".Label TextJacques Nicolas Pierre François Dubuc French, active ca. 1790–1830 George Washington Mantle Clock, Paris, ca. 1815–19 Gilded brass, iron, and enamel Most French Neoclassical mantle clocks feature mythological heroes or goddesses, but Jacques Dubuc designed several models with the standing figure of George Washington for export to the United States. In both America and France, the restrained elegance of the classical ornaments decorating this piece appealed to those who admired ancient Greece and Rome’s cultural achievements and republican forms of government. The bas-relief on the clock’s base shows Washington resigning his military commission, symbolizing the new nation’s commitment to shared civilian government. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 78.134 Exhibition History"First in the Hearts of His Countrymen: America Remembers George Washington 1732-1799," Chrysler Museum of Art, Nov. 23, 1999 - Summer 2001. Published ReferencesBritten's, OLD CLOCKS AND WATCHES AND THEIR MAKERS, (Baillie, Clutton and Ilbert, Bonanza Books: New York, 1956), p. 370 for maker.
ca. 1876
