THE SINGING BIRD IN THE TREE - Lot 47

Lot n° 47
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Estimation :
12000 - 15000 EUR
Result without fees
Result : 13 000EUR
THE SINGING BIRD IN THE TREE - Lot 47
THE SINGING BIRD IN THE TREE Singing bird automaton in 19th-century style, created in the third quarter of the 20th century by Georges Lubrano and his son. Octagonal base in wood marquetry concealing the mechanism, the small faces at the corners with three gold-painted flutes below an applied brass rosette, with four small faceted brass feet; the base returns covered with brass, the faces adorned with bird appliques. The top of the case bears an openwork brass balustrade protecting a field inhabited by a hummingbird and a butterfly foraging among wildflowers growing around an orange tree in the center. When the mechanism is activated by means of a lever hidden beneath the base, the hummingbird tilts towards the water, the butterfly flaps its wings, and the orange tree opens in the center to reveal a singing weaver. The whole is protected by a gold-mounted glass bell. Base 36.5 x 24.5 cm Height of closed tree 62 cm Bell 45 x 32 x 21cm With its original design, this automaton-singing bird nevertheless nods to one of Robert Houdin's most spectacular acts, and also to Carl Fabergé's Bird in an Orange Tree, with the difference (apart from the materials and gems used by Fabergé) that in the latter, the bird emerges from the top of the tree, which itself does not open. The Lubrano family, clockmakers and mechanics in Paris, specialized in the creation and restoration of automata and barometers. Expert: Anthony TURNER We would like to thank Mr. Jean-Yves FRANCH/Les cours de l'atelier floral for clarifying the materials of the tree, and for his generous help in refreshing them.
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