Daniel Marot

These designs for extravagant pendulum clocks come from a series of six etchings created to inspire clockmakers. The solid curvilinear forms of the timepieces—with twisting volutes, acanthus leaf scrolls, and sculptural finials—recall the shapes of Baroque buildings and furniture in the style of Louis XIV. At that time, clocks were handmade luxury items, prized as status symbols by a wealthy elite. In these prints, each clock is surrounded by fragments of patterns that present other options for the adornment of the clock face or case, making the designs more versatile. Wide ranging and prolific, Marot published nearly 300 of his designs in print, including patterns for interiors, gardens, furniture, metalwork, jewelry, textiles, horse carriages, and clocks.