59,800 CHF
Recordon, Spencer & Perkins, London, No. 141., Swiss, circa 1785. Important and large early 20ct. gold, enamel, ruby and pearl-set quarter-repeating 'perpetuelle' watch with special escapement, made for the Chinese market. White enamel (faint hair lines towards centre), with Roman hour and Arabic minute numerals. Moon hands. Notes This previously unrecorded watch seems to throw some further light on the history of the development of the selfwinding watch. However it may in fact pose more questions than it appears to answer. In the first place it is quite clearly of exceptionally high quality, extremely well finished and in no way experimental. In the second, the workmanship is entirely Swiss in character (with the exception perhaps of the diamond end-stone). Finally, the case, which has Neuchatel hallmarks is of a type closely associated with watches made for export to the Chinese market, notably those signed by Jaquet-Droz. The existence of Chinese characters on the back of the bell confirms that it was indeed in China at one time, and may well have returned to Europe with the many others liberated from the Peking Palace during the Boxer rebellion.That the early pioneers of the selfwinding movement would have known about each others work is certain; however what is not so evident is the extent to which they may have worked together. Recordon, who was himself from Geneva, succeeded to Emery's business (see following lot), and applied for a patent covering five differ Read more…
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
1992-10-17
