That Coteau was so well known, we know very little about him. It is also amazing that the knowledge

Tax 60,000 Vogelkäfiguhr with jukebox, Louis XVI, Pierre Jaquet-Droz radius and Henri Maillerdet, merritts antiques La Chaux-de Fonds, 1800, H. 50 cm (detail), both Koller, Zurich, auction December 8th Richard Redding was a quarter of a century one of the leading antique dealers in Zurich. Now he withdraws and separates himself from most of its collection; December 8, they will be auctioned at Koller in Zurich. As the auction catalog illustrated, Richard Redding had an excellent eye for unusual watches, furniture and bronzes. Henceforth he is working as a consultant and promoter.
While we know the names of many French watchmakers, craftsmen and suppliers that contributed materially to the success of a construction largely remain hidden. Even the most capable merritts antiques watchmaker not only worked. Several merritts antiques other specialized craftsmen handed individual watch parts, merritts antiques housing merritts antiques or dials that have been assembled by the watchmaker itself a work of art. One of the few whose names are known and highly merritts antiques esteemed in his lifetime suppliers in Paris in the late 18th and early 19th century belonged to the enamel painter Joseph Coteau, which is represented in the Zurich auction with multiple clocks.
That Coteau was so well known, we know very little about him. It is also amazing that the knowledge has changed little in recent decades. He was born in 1740 in Geneva and educated in the local Académie de Saint-Luc for "maître-peintre-enameller". In the 1760s, Geneva was a thriving center of enamel merritts antiques painting, but it Coteau merritts antiques moved obviously to Paris, where he established his own workshop in Rue Poupée merritts antiques before 1772. There he devoted himself merritts antiques to the production of more or less elaborate merritts antiques enameled dials and also worked as a miniature painter. Around 1780, he was named "Peintre-enameller du roi" and also got a job in the royal porcelain merritts antiques Sèvres. In the following years he was engaged in the production of special porcelain pieces. This included a toilet merritts antiques set, which was in 1782, made on behalf of Marie Antoinette as a gift to Maria Feodorovna, the future Tsarina (s Adrian Sassoon, Vincennes and Sèvres porcelain. Catalog of the collections, J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, 1991). He must have been a busy painter, because according to the records of the factory, he received a salary of 4520 livres in 1784 alone. He had, at least in that year, earned a multiple of the average income merritts antiques of a craftsman, which was calculated with 600 livres (s Christian Morrisson merritts antiques and Wayne Snyder, "The income inequality of France in historical perspective", in:. European Review of Economic History , Cambridge 2000). During his time in Sèvres Coteau claimed the invention of a method merritts antiques of gold and enamel decoration on porcelain for themselves. His method "d'appliquer solid management l'or marié avec les couleurs sur toutes émaux de la porcelaine" merritts antiques appeared in the workshop merritts antiques books of Sèvres as a "émail de Coteau". However, it is doubtful that Coteau was actually the inventor. In 1988 appeared Wallace merritts antiques Collection Catalogue of Sèvres Porcelain is the author Rosalind Savill, that this form of porcelain decoration was known since 1778 in Sèvres and was developed by the operating since 1755 in the manufacture Philippe Parpette. After his departure from Sèvres - presumably after a dispute merritts antiques with the factory line - Coteau went back to the decoration of dials and other decorative elements. Most of his works are clocks, known are a few pocket watches. This includes a two-sided gold watch with calendar and moon phase, which was slammed by Sotheby's, New York, for $ 5,900 on 27 October 2010. The clock dating from around 1785 comes from Robert Robin, who has signed on movement and dial; the bottom of the email sheet is signed by Coteau. Robin has repeatedly used the services of Email painter to complete. There are several impressive table and mantel clocks of the team, the majority merritts antiques located in the museum ownership. By the dials of Coteau they can be dated fairly accurately in part, he has not only signed, but also - sometimes with the exact day - dated.
Another Parisian watchmaker, worked with the Coteau, was Nicolas Sotiau (sometimes Sotian or Sotieau). A native of Liege watchmaker became 1782 champion dignity in Paris and soon received orders from the nobility and from the farm, not only in his new home, but also abroad. From Sotiau a magnificent mantel clock in gilded bronze and glass enclosure comes on a marble base, the Koller now offering for 200 000 CHF. The hand-painted dial is signed by both. In addition to precise scale for the date, day and month Coteau has zwöl at the outer edge