9,000 CHF
Vacheron & Constantin, Genève,movement No. 454901, case No. 286297,made for the British Hydrographic Service, in 1940. Very fine and rare, large, silver, keyless, indirect center-seconds deck and pocket lever chronometer with Guillaume balance. Accompanied by the Extract from the Archives. Four-body, "bassine", polished, silver. Hinged silver cuvette. Brushed silver, champlevé Arabic numerals, outer minute divisions, outermost seconds track divided into fifths. Blued steel spade hands. Notes An excellent example of a Vacheron Constantin deck chronometer made for the British Hydrographic Service, excellently finished and in very good condition. The worldwide pre-eminence of the Royal Navy in the 19th century meant that Admiralty charts became the global standard for all ships, whether warships or merchantmen. The Hydrographic Service was the surveying arm of the Royal Navy. In the early 19th century, Navy Hydrographer Thomas Hurd persuaded the Admiralty that surveys at sea would best be carried out by Royal Navy ships. For surveying purposes, the Service needed top quality timekeepers, such as the present lot.
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2008-11-16
