336,250 CHF
A Monsieur de Castellane "Perpétuelle" watch No. 26, sold on 27 February 1792, for the sum of 3300 Francs. Gold self-winding watch, with "à toc" quarterrepeating and winding indicator, constructed on the principals of the "garde-temps". Notes Note: Breguet completed approximately 15 of the first series of perpétuelle watches before he left for Switzerland in 1793, and most incorporated his improved version of the lever escapement with jewelled pallets but without draw. This particular watch a spears to have an experimental escapement unlike any other. For further information refer to the previous lot. LOUIS ANDRÉ BONIFACE Comte de Castellane (1758-1837) Louis André Boniface, Comte de Castellane - Novejean, was born on 4th August 1758. Politician and French General, his family was amongst the largest and most important of the nobility in Provence and included the Marquis d'Entrecasteaux, the Comte d'Achémar and the Comte de Grignan. A deputy from the nobility at the Assemblée Constituante in 1789, he joined the Tiers Etat in voting for religious freedom, fought for the Declaration of Human Rights, and supported the call for the abolition of the State Prisons. Thrown into prison during the Terror, he disappeared from the political scene for several years. Reinstated under Napoleon, he was appointed Governor of the Lower Pyrénées in 1802, and later in August 1815 named Pair de France. The Count died in 1837.
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
1991-04-14
