494. ATTRIBUTED TO KARL GRIESBAUM (1872-1941). SMALL GERMAN AUTOMATON BOX, CIRCA 1920-1930.

Lot description

Tortoiseshell and gold. It has been attributed to Griesbaum's workmanship because of the many similarities in the chiselling of the central part; the automaton and bellows systems; the actuator in the shape of a bird in flight.
 
Founded in Triberg, in the Black Forest in 1905, Karl Griesbaum's company specialised exclusively in songbird boxes at the beginning of the 20th century. In the preceding years, however, Karl's father Mathias Griesbaum ran a micro-mechanics workshop in the basement of his house in the Black Forest, an area known for its tradition of cuckoo clock making. A travelling salesman, Mr. Rosenau from Frankfurt, first suggested to Griesbaum the manufacture of songbird boxes, bringing with him an example from Frankfurt and asking Mathias Griesbaum to copy it. At first, the company cooperated with box makers from Pforzheim, until all the steps in the production of these traditional Swiss-German songbird boxes were made in-house.
 
Revision required; some of the systems are blocked at the time of cataloguing. Subsequent modifications.
4 x 10 x 7 cm.
 
Reference literature:
- Museum collection, Moscú. Singing bird box. (s. f.). https://mus-col.com/en/collection/watch/products-with-mechanism-and-automaton/22116/