Dear MMDers,  On Tuesday, 8th November, 2005, the auction house of
Artcurial-Briest-Le Fur-Poulain-F.Tajan will be holding an important
auction of musical boxes, singing birds and snuff boxes, at its Hôtel
Dassault Gallery in Paris:

  Hôtel Dassault
  7-9 Rond Point des Champs-Elysées
  75008 Paris
  Tuesday 8 November 2005 at 14h15

The sale features 183 lots.  Highlights include:

 - Musical toys playing Brahms and Mozart lullabies, and "marottes"
(musical dolls with china head);

 - Amongst 60 Musical Boxes are several early movements, including
Napoleon III epoch with magnificent marquety inlays : Sublime Harmonie,
a <<Timbres, Tambours et Castagnettes>> or <<Organocléïde>>, playing
operatic works from Verdi, Meyerbeer, Boieldieu, Donizetti, Planquette
or Strauss, as well as Ouvertures from Mozart, Rossini or Flotow;

 - Musical slot machines such as this rare cafe table with music and
gambling machine, or some Boites de Gare;

 - Gold, silver or enameled Musical Jewels Empire or Restauration, as
"Vinaigrette", "Boite à mouches", Seals, and "Châtelaines";

 - Watches and clocks, works of Breguet, Duchène, or Arbez;

 - 48 snuff boxes works from Bordier, Alibert, Meylan, Capt and Dupin,
in burr-wood, tortoise-shell, silver, gold, or with automaton and a
rare burrwood snuffbox for meritorious First Empire officers;

 - Singing birds from Griesbaum, Bontemps, Jacques and Charles
Bruguier, in wood, silver or silver gilt ;

 - Novelties

 - Limonaire children merry-go-round organ.

The preview will take place on 4th November until 7th November,
11-19 o'clock.  The printed catalogue is available at the Toulouse
and Paris offices of Artcurial and is published on web sites at

http://www.leludion.com/event/introduction_e.htm 
(with highlight information in English, or on request),
and in French at http://www.leludion.com/event/introduction.htm 
and  http://www.artcurial.auction.fr/ 

For video samples of some of the highlights in action, please
e-mail me at my address below.

Best Regards from sunny Toulouse

Philippe Crasse - Le Ludion
philippecrasse@leludion.com.geentroep [delete ".geentroep" to reply]
http://www.leludion.com/