124,500 CHF
Audemars Piguet, Brassus & Genève, Made for Cooke & Kelvey, London hallmark for 1884. Unique and exceptionally fine miniature 18K gold hunting-cased keyless fob watch with perpetual calendar, moon phase and minute-repeating. Five-body, “bassine et filets”, polished, back cover with monogram. White enamel, radial Roman numerals, outer minute track, blued steel “spade” hands four subsidiary sunk dials for days of the week, date, months of the four year leap cycle and subsidiary seconds concentric with phases of the moon aperture. Notes The desire to miniaturize timepieces is an ideal inherent to the watchmaker's art. After all, the watch was conceived as a miniaturized table clock suspended from a pendant. In the five centuries which have followed, the drive to create miniature watches has not diminished, in fact it has remained the one challenge that sets the good apart from the great. As early as the 16th century the ability to fit a watch into a ring was sure to win the watchmaker a reputation of excellence amongst the courts of Europe and ensure that his workshop would be a busy one. In modern times the ability to repair these miniature masterpieces has the same effect.The current watch must represent what was an unparalleled accomplishment at its time of manufacture. Much smaller watches are known to exist, however one of 14''' with perpetual calendar, phases of the moon and minute repetition would have been unheard-of. The firm of Audemars Piguet was well known
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2003-10-11
