31,860 CHF
“Miniature Minute Repeater” L. Leroy & Cie, Bd. de la Madeleine a Paris, No. 67170. Made circa 1900. Very fine and extremely rare, miniature, minute-repeating, 18K gold and rose diamond-set keyless lady’s pendant watch. Four-body, “bassine”, polished, the back cover inset with a platinum letter “M” set with rose-cut diamonds. Hinged gold cuvette. White enamel with Dauphine numerals, outer minute track, subsidiary seconds. Gold “spade” hands. 23 mm., 10’’’, frosted gilt, 25 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensation balance, blued steel Breguet balance spring, index regulator, repeating on gongs activated by a slide on the band. Dial, cuvette and movement signed. Diam. 28 mm. Notes Miniature minute-repeating watches are extremely rare, the present watch is one of the smallest ever made. Another, by Gallopin, 28 mm in size, was sold by Antiquorum, New York, May 26, 2004, lot 292. Another measuring 27 mm, by Haas Neveaux & Cie, was sold by Antiquorum Geneva, November 11, 2004, lot 435. The Leroy lady’s minute-repeater was considered at the time to be the smallest minute repeater in the world, along with the Audemars Piguet lady’s pendant watch illustrated in "Audemars Piguet" by Gisbert Brunner, Christian Pfeiffer-Belli, and Martin K. Wehrli, p. 116, photos 85 a, b, and c. L. Leroy & Cie. Founded in 1764 by Charles Le Roy, Quai des Orfèvres in Paris. Le Roy offered a choice of watches and pendulums, of high quality which earned him the support of
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2006-11-12
