26,400 CHF
Early Atmos, J. L. Reutter Patent Atmos, Pendule Perpetuelle, J.L. Reutter patent, Model “Atmos I”, No. 3752, Ref. P.O.1, Swiss, made in 1934, retailed by Charvet, Lyon. Made in the late 1920s. Very fine and very rare, early, Art Deco, chrome and black marble, "perpetual" clock wound by changes in barometric pressure with early mercury in glass expansion device. Rectangular, chromed base, the ends curving downwards to form the feet, polished black marble base, glass shade. Annular matte silvered with painted radial Roman numerals. Blued steel Breguet hands. Notes The present "Atmos" clock is a very early example with its movement driven by a mercury in glass expansion device rotating a cylinder which winds the mainspring by ratchet. In the late 1920s the young engineer Jean-Leon Reutter experimented with a clock which would not need direct mechanical or electrical intervention to keep it wound, a clock powered only by Perpetual Motion. His idea of a Perpetual Motion timepiece led him to make a clock with a mechanism designed to consume the smallest possible amount of power to keep it running. His design included a device powering the movement independently, using mercury - a substance which would react to the most sensitive changes in temperature and atmospheric conditions. Reutter developed a specially designed glass tube similar to that of a thermometer for the mercury and encased it all inside a metal cylinder, known as the Bellows. The result was an ingenious new
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2010-05-08
