Musical Automaton Laughing Clown Playing Mandolin by Vichy, c. 1

With plaster-composition character head, original paint (unobtrusive chips on cheeks), fixed brown glass eyes, open smiling mouth with painted teeth, brown mohair wig, bisque hands holding (later) mandolin, sitting on trapezoidal stool with going-barrel motor, two cams, three levers and cylinder musical movement playing two airs on a single revolution, dressed in cream satin suit trimmed with rosettes, sequined waistcoat and matching hat, ht. 24 ¾ in. (63 cm) including the hat, right hand repaired, governor, governor-cock and musical movement replaced, with steel key and acorn-form stop/start. The clown tilts his head from side to side, strums and swings his legs back and forth. – Working condition. – The face of this automaton was one of a pair modelled by Vichy to represent the figures "Jean Qui Pleure" and "Jeanne Qui Rit" ("John who Cries" and "Joan who Laughs"), presumably a reference to Jacques Offenbach's 1864 operetta of the same name. The figures are usually seen as a crying boy and a laughing girl sitting on their school desks, however the laughing face was also used on a series of clown figures such as the one here. Similar faces are also found modelled in wax as a pair of school boys and in bisque as the laughing/crying "surprise" doll by Leon Casimir Bru. – For the automaton with the crying face see Auction Team Breker's catalogue 30 May 2015, Lot 609.

布雷克拍品等级是为了方便竞买人判断拍卖品的成色而设置的。布雷克等级用1到6级来标注外观和功能的成色，(从非常好到非常差)。 在目录图册里用括号里的2个数字来表示，前一个数字表示外观成色的级别，后一个数字表示功能成色的级别。如(3/2)表示外观成色是3(满意的)，功能成色2(好)。 成色 定义参照下列标准： 1 - 非常好 (未使用过，没有使用痕迹) 2 - 好 (新，极少的使用痕迹) 3 - 满意的 (普通的使用痕迹) 4 - 及格的 (明显的使用痕迹，某个非主要部件是后配的) 5 - 有缺陷的 (极明显的使用痕迹, 某个主要部件是后配的，功能上有缺陷，需要修理) 6 - 非常差 (严重破损, 缺少重要部件)