CLOCK "TURK ON HORSEBACK"

Germany, late 16th century
Copper alloys, steel; casting, chasing, carving, enamel, gilding

This gilded bronze automatic clock with the figure of an oriental mounted hunter on a base was also made in Augsburg at the beginning of the 17th century at the latest. Less than half a metre high, heavy and skilfully decorated, this timepiece is more like a chamber sculpture. At the foot of the clock are two small dials with Arabic and Roman numerals. The figures of the horseman, horse and accompanying dog move together: when the mechanism is activated, the rider turns his eyes and waves his hand with a dagger in it, the horse turns its eyes and the dog follows its master.

The decoration of the clock, made by the masters of the
leading European jewellery centre, is characterised by a
special plasticity of forms and ornaments, careful elaboration
of the surface of each detail - the rider's clothes, the horse's harness, the upper part of the pedestal decorated with a tracery of herbs and figures of small animals. Many masters
of the 16th and 17th centuries tried to convey in their works
the beauty of the surrounding world, paying attention to
the smallest of its manifestations, passionately depicting stones, blades of grass, insects and animals. Such detailed naturalistic decoration was widely used in arts and crafts.

A high pedestal of the clock is decorated on the sides with garlands of fruits - a favourite motif of the Baroque masters - and four large cartouches with forest scenes, echoing the theme of hunting.