Reuge Music Mechanical Singing Bird Box With Presentation Case

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Description

This Reuge Music Mechanical Singing Bird Box is a highly coveted luxury mechanical automaton. The blend of a vibrant cobalt … Read more This Reuge Music Mechanical Singing Bird Box is a highly coveted luxury mechanical automaton. The blend of a vibrant cobalt blue, lapis-inspired lacquer case with heavily detailed, engine-turned gold scrollwork reflects the opulent style of 18th- and 19th-century European luxury court objects. But the magic is in the performance; when the side lever is pulled, the gold medallion lid pops back to reveal a finely pierced scroll grille. The bird rises up instantly, flaps its wings, opens and closes its tiny beak, wags its tail, and rotates continuously as it sings. When the cycle completes, it descends cleanly, and the lid snaps shut automatically.

MAKER: Crafted by the renowned watchmaker and musical artisan Reuge in Sainte-Croix, Switzerland, it is widely celebrated for its precise engineering and classic artistry. Founded in 1865, Manufacture Reuge remains the world's most premier authority on luxury mechanical music and they are the last manufacturer on Earth that still designs, hand-feathers and builds traditional singing bird boxes and cylinder automata from scratch. Because a single singing bird movement takes at least three months of intensive manual labor to build, tune and test, their newly manufactured boxes remain incredibly rare, high-end collector items.

MATERIALS: The exterior is heavily paneled in a striking soft enamel faux lapis lazuli effect built up with fine layers of dark cobalt-blue lacquer. It features metallic gold inclusions catching the light to replicate a true celestial "milky way" gemstone appearance. The rectangular frame, chased borders, bun feet and inner grille are made of gold-plated brass. The miniature automaton is entirely decorated with authentic, shimmering iridescent bird feathers hitting a spectrum of reds, greens, and blues in the light.

SOUND: Rather than a typical pinned-cylinder musical melody, this automaton produces a naturalistic birdsong. It replicates a crisp, fluid whistle through an interior mechanical bellow and an oscillating whistle cylinder system.

Signature/Maker’s Mark: Incised mark beneath the music box (photos #9, 10). Presentation box dimensions: 3 inches high x 6 inches wide x 4.25” deep. See less