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Clocks by Lépine are relatively scarce, but made to the same high standards as his watches.
Lépine occupied premises in the Place Dauphine only during the 1770's, however, there are numerous watches from Lépine’s workshop, cased c.1800, that contain movements of 25 years earlier. The explanation for this lies in the troubled history of the French craft guilds in the late 18th century.
By 1795, the French Revolution had effectively disrupted manufacture and industry as it sought to abolish the craft guilds. Were that not enough, the general civil unrest followed by the wars of Napoleon took away most of the able bodied workmen, leaving their shops without their apprentices and junior artisans. Adding further confusion to the situation was the decree to replace the 12-hour day with decimal timekeeping and remake all old watches and clocks to conform with new system.
Clockmakers could no longer find enough journeyman to do the engraving, wheel cutting, finishing and the numerous other tasks required to complete a clock. The masters themselves found it necessary to complete the work as best they could on their own. It is not surprising that the understaffed and overworked clock making establishments chose to finish their old stocks of incomplete and unsold movements to meet the demands of their trade.
for further information, see:
Chapiro, Adolphe. Jean Antoine Lépine, Paris, 1988. |
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