Rare Roullet et Decamps Automaton of a Bouqetière Surprise

Description:

Rare Roullet et Decamps Automaton of a Bouqetière Surprise, with bisque portrait head stamped in red Déposé Tête Jumeau, Bte. S.G.D.G. 8, open mouth with accented cupid's bow and two rows of teeth, pronounced philtrum, shapely double chin, fixed blue paperweight eyes, finely painted lashes, pierced ears, cork pate, blonde mohair wig, bisque shoulderplate and hands, a gold-painted wicker basket filled with silk flowers suspended at her waist, with single-air going-barrel movement in the body, wearing cream-colored satin costume, pleated pink satin underskirt with lace overlay, decolleté bodice, and matching bonnet, ht. 25 in. with bonnet, (professional restoration to left temple, cheek and shoulderplate); she looks from side to side and waves her right hand over the basket as though conjuring from the heart of a papier-mache rose a small bisque doll who rises, throwing kisses; she bows to her audience, the bisque doll descends into the rose, the lid closes over her, and the sequence begins again, five movements.

Described in The Jumeau Book as a "unique and extremely rare portrait model," bisque heads of this type were commissioned by Roullet et Decamps for use on a series of larger automata, often incorporating a magical or fantasy element. The Bouqetière Surprise falls into this category, her serene expression making the strange contents of her basket all the more surprising. Illustrated as No. 203 in the Roullet et Decamps catalogue, this automaton originally cost 95 Francs, placing it in the luxury range.

Literature: Francois Theimer and Florence Theriault, The Jumeau Book, p. 232; Bailly, Automata, the Golden Age, p. 293.
Estimate $25,000-30,000

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