The painted blue-green surface of this mid-18th century timepiece is sprinkled with tiny polychrome flowers as demure as a printed calico fabric. In places, the little flowers are repeated in far bolder ormolu (gilt bronze) mounts that outline the curvaceous form. The clock was designed to stand against a wall, for the flowers appear only on the front and sides, while the flamboyant finial is not finished on the back. Red silk panels hide the clock’s mechanics and series of bells; each was wound by a separate key inserted through one of the holes in the white enameled face. Set against a panel of red silk, the ormolu trophy on the base consists of a guitar, cello, horns and musical scores; similar trophies would later appear on American painted furniture. Here, the trophy celebrates the importance of music in the elegant Rococo France of Louis XV. Just underneath the face, a tiny window framed by ormolu mounts, gave a glimpse of the pendulum, ticking back and forth as the end of the ancien régime, noted for the resplendent excess of its fine and decorative arts, drew ever nearer.