An early antique tortoiseshell singing bird box, by Bontems,

 

Circa 1870,

 

Going barrel movement,

 

The colourful bird reflects his plumage in the lid...

 

When wound and the start/stop slide is moved to the right, the bird suddenly emerges through square-tooled Rococo scroll gilt grille then moves bone beak, wings, tailfeather and body from side-to-side to continuous synchronised birdsong.

The bird with banded feathered plumage in streaked turquoise, dark blue, orange and green, good purple and red iridescent highlights, highly polished lid interior for full bird reflection, twin laurel leaf engraved border and the lid top with a tri-gilt metal incised study of a pond-stalking crane beneath reeds, in polished half underbelly-cut tortoiseshell case with many light anomalies for movement glimpse, hidden key compartment to rear.