Among several unusual clocks included in the 328-lot dedicated auction to be held in Paris on June 26 by Chayette et Cheval is this 3¾ x 2¾in (9.5 x 7cm) reveil briquet (lighter alarm clock).
It features a mechanism which automatically lights a candle at a time pre-selected by depressing a small knob on the case. This was the invention of Jean Eugène Robert, known as Robert-Houdin, famous as both a clockmaker and a conjurer.
He submitted a request for a patent in 1837 for “an alarm clock with a lighter which via a spring strikes a match to give light at the desired time”, making it his first patented invention.