487,500 CHF
S. Smith & Son, Watchmakers to the Admiralty, 9 Strand, London, No. 309-2, hallmarked 1903-04. Exceptional and highly important massive, oversized, Grande Complication, Grande et Petite Sonnerie clockwatch with minute-repeating, perpetual calendar, split-seconds chronograph with 60-minute register, anti-theft swivel pendant, very special tri-color gold and enamel dial, and power reserve indicator. By "SS" (Samuel Smith), four-body, "pommes", massive, five-bar hinges, polished, gold hinged cuvette, rotating bow for theft prevention, olive setting flange, gold bolt for switching from grande to petite sonnerie at 2 o’clock, similar bolt for striking/silence on the opposite side at 8 o’clock, split-seconds gold pushbutton at 11 o’clock. By master dial maker Willis, made of ten pieces of gold and enamel, radial Roman numerals on white enamel ground, outer minute/chronograph divisions, outermost blue enamel for the date, separated by a small gold ring, three subsidiary gold and enamel sunk dials for days of the week concentric with minute register, months concentric with subsidiary seconds, and four-year leap cycle concentric with up-and-down indicator sector. Blued steel "spade" hour and minute hands, gold "lozenge" date hand, blued steel index hands for seconds and up-and-down, and "double Roman" blued steel calendar hands. 61 mm (27’’’), frosted gilt, 3/4 plate, lateral counterpoised lever escapement with steel wheel, cut-bimetallic compensation balance with double
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2004-04-24
