Theriault's auction weekend, May 2-3 at the Westin Governor Morris Hotel, Morristown, New Jersey

Theriault's will be having a weekend of auctions in New Jersey at the Historic Westin Governor Morris Hotel in Morristown, New Jersey on Saturday and Sunday, May 2 and 3, 2015. For sale will be many fine antique dolls and automata. Among the automata is a superb piece by Henri Phalibois. Shown here is an antique Conjuror by Leopold Lambert of Paris.

Here is where you can get more information on Theriault's auction weekend, May 2-3, 2015.

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Douglas Fisher now offering Golden Age automata, singing birds, and musical boxes

The firm of Douglas Fisher of London has launched a new web site which offers Golden Age automata, fine singing bird boxes and cages, and unusual cylinder musical boxes.

The list of offerings features many examples from the most renowned makers: Vichy, Roullet-Decamps, Griesbaum, Bontems, Phallibois, and others. Every piece they offer is shown in static images, video with sound, and in a 360-degree view. According to their web site, the majority of thier pieces can be viewed at their gallery at 75 Portobello Road in London. They will also be exhibiting at various fairs in Europe, USA and Asia.

Here is the web site for Douglas Fisher Antique Automata Ltd.

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Clown Illusionist automaton by Phalibois performs bizarre decapitation routine

Back in December I posted about magician Pierre Mayer's new clown automaton. In the post, I explained that the illusion is a venerable one and made reference to a similar piece by Phalibois. Here is the Phalibois automaton in question.

Like Mayer's piece, this automaton depicts a clown doing a famous decapitation illusion. Because it is a much large piece, it incorporates a music box which also served to drive the mechanism. There are also a few other added surprises in store for the viewer. The automaton was made in Paris by either Henri or Jean Phalibois somewhere between 1890 and 1900. The entire things measures 33-1/2" high by 15-3/4" wide by 19-1/8" deep.

This delightful pieces is located at The Morris Museum, part of the Murtogh D. Guinness Collection of Automatic Musical Instruments & Automata housed there.

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Video of 'The Headless Clown' magic automaton by Pierre Mayer

I posted a few days ago about the amazing new automaton by Pierre Mayer. He is known for creating automata that perform a magic trick. This particular piece is a tip of the hat to the famous French maker Phalibois and his headless clown automaton.

As you will see in this new video, the scene starts with clown a holding a fan. The clown slowly raises the fan in front of his face. There is a pause and when the fan is pulled away, the clown's head has disappeared! The top of one of the boxes next to the figure starts to rise, and the clown's head mysteriously emerges from within! The entire sequence then reverses, ending with the clown's head restored to its proper place.

See more magical automata on Pierre Mayer's web site.

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The Headless Clown - magic automaton by Pierre Mayer

I had the great privilege to be among the very first people to see the new automaton created by Pierre Mayer. Pierre Mayer is known for his wooden automata which perform magical illusions.

The piece is a marvelous interpretation of a classic magic automaton made by the famous maker Phalibois. The scene starts with clown a holding a fan. The clown slowly raises the fan in front of his face. There is a pause and when the fan is pulled away, the clown's head has disappeared! The surprises aren't over yet, however. There is a pair over-sized dice to the left of the clown. The top of one starts to rise, and the clown's head mysteriously emerges from within. The entire sequence then reverses, ending with the clown's head restored to its proper place.

I was told by the artist himself that the clown's colorful costume was inspired by the lavish ones used by Cirque du Soleil in their performances. As with all Pierre Mayer's work, The Headless Clown is beautifully made.

Now in production, The Headless Clown and other magical automata may be found on Pierre Mayer's web site.

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French automaton of singing taxidermy bird in brass cage

Phalibois is a famous name in the history of automata. Apparently the father and son team made some singing bird automata to compliment their more typical automata which depicted monkeys, tight-rope walkers, and conjurers.

From the eBay description:

Here is a very rare to find "Jean Phalibois" (French made) bird automaton. An amazing work of J. Phalibois (most likely would date it around 1890 or even earlier). This is a very unique larger-size bird cage (brass wire cage on a molded plaster and wood decorative base). It is a rare and nice high-end cage. This bird is authentic/original taxidermy bird with amazing condition. The whole original taxidermy bird was installed on a brass bird body with inside mechanism (A very rare bird! Please, we welcome a bird expert contact us, to give us information about what kind of bird is this.) Real natural feathers (iridescence blue/green wing feathers, iridescence head, chest and neck feathers and some iridescence tail feathers. They change colors depending on the light. Pictures do not do justice to these beautiful feathers. Looks beautiful and very attractive. The bird, flooring, cage, bellows and the Mechanical parts are all original and in excellent condition. Bellows and the clock-work automation work perfectly like new. Overall condition is undamaged and truly excellent, with the slight patina of age. This is a true antique, not a reproduction, and one that is sure to appreciate in value over time.

Here is where you can see many more pictures and two additional videos of this French automaton of singing taxidermy bird in brass cage.

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Leonardo's 'Last Supper' painting brought to life as an automaton going to auction

Shown here is a rare automaton by the famous maker Phalibois representing Davinci's painting The Last Supper. It is a large scene-style automaton measuring about four feet in length. It may be the only one of its kind in the world. This is the second extraordinary piece in the Skinner auction that takes place tomorrow, June 2nd, 2012.

From the Skinner auction catalog:

The Lord’s Supper Automaton, attributed to Henry Phalibois, c.1890, the automaton based on Da Vinci’s The Lord’s Supper, features Jesus and the twelve Apostles in period clothing moving as if in serious conversation at a long table set with pewter dishes and goblets, complex gearing and drives all powered by two 110 and 220 volt 60-cycle motors, lg. 69, ht. 30, dp. 22 in.

Here is DaVinci's famous painting of the scene:

Here is Phalibois' three dimensional interpretation of the painting:

This automaton was featured in a traveling exhibition that toured Europe, Australia and New Zealand in the early 1920s, under the name of The London Mechanical and Electrical exhibition. Details of this exhibition are featured in Rod Cornelius, Mechanical Music, July/August 2011, pp. 32-35.

Here are the auction details
Date: June 2, 2012, 10am
Preview Times:
   June 1, 2012, 12pm - 7pm
   June 2, 2012, 8am - 9:30am
Location: 274 Cedar Hill Street, Marlborough, MA

Here is the Skinner online catalog listing for The Lord's Supper Automaton, attributed to Henry Phalibois.

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Automata exhibition at San Francisco airport

The video shown below accompanies an new exhibition of antique automata that opened at the International Terminal of San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in November of 2011. Most of the nineteen automata on display were loaned from the Murtogh D. Guinness Collection at the Morris Museum located in Morristown, New Jersey.

From the SFO Museum web site:

This exhibition of automata and mechanical tableaux offers a broad range of automaton production from the second half of the nineteenth century, and includes a late twentieth-century creation using nineteenth-century parts and production methods. Most are set in motion by a mechanical spring motor and possess a music box. The best makers of the era are represented: Lambert, Phalibois, Tharin, Renou, Roullet & Decamps, and Vichy.

The exhibit is situated right where travelers get on and off the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system and is open to ALL visitors, ticketed or non-ticketed. If you are in the San Francisco area, you'll want to go check this out!

Here is a link to more information on the automata exhibit at SFO from the SFO Museum web site.

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Whistling boy automaton made by Phalibois

Here is a video showing the performance of a whistling boy automaton made by the famous Phalibois. This is a large Phalibois whistler -- approximately 3 feet tall with the base. As the boy whistles, he tilts his head from side to side and opens and closes his eyes slightly. He also moves his arm up and down a little.

[ Thanks Kevin! ]

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Video of Phalibois automaton of Davinci's painting

Last year I posted details of an auction featuring a rare
automaton animating Davinci's painting The Last Supper. This very large automaton is attributed to Henry Phalibois and dates to around 1890 to 1920. At the time of that post, there was no video of the piece, but that has changed as you can see from the detailed video above.

The piece is going to auction once again in New Zealand on 2nd June 2011, this time at Webbs auction house. The seller very much hopes to find someone who will restore it fully and treasure it for the rare piece that it is. It may be the only one of its kind in the entire world!

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Dolls in Motion: 1850 - 1915 by Florence Theriault

Here is a book on vintage automata that covers the many types of automata and some of the most prominent makers of the past. The book is no longer in print, but can easily be ordered used.

Automata themes covered include:
•Animal themes
•Clowns
•Dancing Dolls
•Drummers
•Magicians
•Musicians
•Pull toys
•Smoking Dolls
•Walking Dolls

Automata makers covered include:
•Jumeau
•Lambert
•Phalibois
•Renou
•Roullet & Decamps
•Simon & Halbig
•Theroude
•Vichy
•Zinner & Sohne

Here is where you can see inside or order the book Dolls in Motion.

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DaVinci's Last Supper - automaton by Phalibois

Shown here is a rare automaton by the famous maker Phalibois representing Davinci's painting The Last Supper. It is a large scene-style automaton measuring about four feet in length. It could be the only one of its kind in the world.

The Last Supper automaton will be going to auction along with one of Pierrot Serenading the Moon by Vichy, and another large scale scene of a ship rocking on the ocean in front of a rotating backdrop of a city shoreline in Europe.

These three automata were featured in a traveling exhibition that toured Europe, Australia and New Zealand in the early 1920s, under the name of The London Mechanical and Electrical exhibition.

The auction is to be held on 25th February 2010 in New Zealand by Art+Objects under the name "The Newman Collection".

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Death+Resurrection: In the Chamber of Reflection

Marvel at Thomas Kuntz's self-portrait based on a classic automata motif: the severed and restored head. The entire piece -- including the cams, levers, and actuating devices -- were hand-cut from brass, steel, and wood.

From the video description

This automaton, a nightmarish vision, was inspired in part by the 19th century Phalibois clown automaton. The first version was sold to a private collector and then this 23" tall automaton was made from a completely new set of sculptures with some added features and a completely new mechanical design. It is an auto-biographical self-portrait told through occult allegory and runs for one minute to complete the cycle.

See more amazing art by Thomas Kuntz on his web site.

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Thomas Kuntz Incredible Decapitation Automaton

This eerie, life-like automaton by (and of) automaton artist Thomas Kuntz does a version of the classic decapitation trick. This is mastery of a craft -- or actually, several.

From the YouTube description:
This automaton, a nightmarish vision was inspired in part by the 19th century Phalibois clown automaton. The first version was sold to a private collector and then this 23" tall automaton was made from a completely new set of sculptures with some added features and a completely new mechanical design. It is an auto-biographical self-portrait told through occult allegory and runs for one minute to complete the cycle. A mechanical musical "dirge" is built into the machine (but not heard on this clip). The entire figure including the cams, levers, and actuating devices below the figure were made from scratch hand-cut from brass steel and wood.

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Henry Phalibois Automaton of a Laughing Clown

This Laughing Clown automaton by Phalibois is going to auction on August 23rd, 2008 by Skinner Auctioneers.

The clown's mechanism contains a going-barrel movement with four boxwood cams and single-air cylinder movement that cause the figure to look from side to side, wink his eyes, slap his sides with his his hands, and shrugging his shoulders rapidly, so that his whole body seems to be shaking with laughter.

Here is the full eBay listing for the Henry Phalibois Automaton of a Laughing Clown.

Chinese Magician Automaton - Auction

This is one of the many automata that will be auctioned by Skinner Auctioneers in Bolton, Massachusetts on October 28th, 2007.

Nick Hawkins -- Skinner's resident music box/scientific instrument/automata expert -- was kind enough to give me a live demonstration of this piece.

It is quite large and the sequence surprisingly long. Overall, one of the most remarkable pieces I have ever seen.

Visit Skinner's site to learn more about the upcoming Science & Technology Auction and the preview dates.