This is a French Portico clock with a case made entirely of D’Ore bronze and decorated with gilded columns and dentil molding. It was built in the firm started by the famed clockmaker Julien Le Roy. Le Roy, born in Tours, France in 1686, was the fifth generation in a family line of clockmakers and became renowned throughout Europe in his own right. In 1739, he became the appointed clockmaker to King Louis XV. Le Roy’s clocks were not only beautiful (as one can see), but also mechanically advanced for the time.
Julien Le Roy was a contemporary and friend of the clockmaker Antoine Gaudron, who was also well-known for his work in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. It is said that the two may have consulted with one another.
