102nd Auction
2020/6/29
Lot 254
Gottfried Torborch, Munich, Height 520 mm, circa 1720
A German tortoiseshell veneered religieuse of highest quality with pewter marquetry and quarter hour / hour strike
Case: ebony-veneered softwood, red tortoiseshell veneer, pewter inlays, glazed front and side panels, detachable top concealing the bells. Dial: brass, applied silver chapter ring with Roman hours and Arabic minutes, finely engraved centre, cast brass cherub head spandrels, pierced and blued hands. Movm.: rectangular-shaped brass movement, 2 hammers / 2 bells, 2 barrels, verge escapement, short pendulum with silk string suspension.
The tortoiseshell case is ornamented on three sides with elaborate, exquisitely finished pewter marquetry scrolls. The dial is flanked by pilasters; the moulded upper part with an inverted bell top and eight gilt urns is particularly beautiful.
Gottfried Torborch originally came from Danzig. He became a citizen of Munich in 1685 and the permission to work as a master watchmaker. In 1699 he bought the house at Theatinerstraße 37, which in 1742 passed through inheritance to his underage son Josef Niklas Torborch from his second marriage. Thus we may assume that Gottfried Torborch died at that time. Many of Torboch’s clocks and watches reside today in important museums and private collections.
A German tortoiseshell veneered religieuse of highest quality with pewter marquetry and quarter hour / hour strike
Case: ebony-veneered softwood, red tortoiseshell veneer, pewter inlays, glazed front and side panels, detachable top concealing the bells. Dial: brass, applied silver chapter ring with Roman hours and Arabic minutes, finely engraved centre, cast brass cherub head spandrels, pierced and blued hands. Movm.: rectangular-shaped brass movement, 2 hammers / 2 bells, 2 barrels, verge escapement, short pendulum with silk string suspension.
The tortoiseshell case is ornamented on three sides with elaborate, exquisitely finished pewter marquetry scrolls. The dial is flanked by pilasters; the moulded upper part with an inverted bell top and eight gilt urns is particularly beautiful.
Gottfried Torborch originally came from Danzig. He became a citizen of Munich in 1685 and the permission to work as a master watchmaker. In 1699 he bought the house at Theatinerstraße 37, which in 1742 passed through inheritance to his underage son Josef Niklas Torborch from his second marriage. Thus we may assume that Gottfried Torborch died at that time. Many of Torboch’s clocks and watches reside today in important museums and private collections.
estimated
4.000—6.000 €
Price realized
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