Arnolt

Arnolt, Hamburg, circa 1660. Fine and very rare silver pre-balance spring, single hand repoussé lady’s pendant watch. Two-body, "bassine" with curved in edge, the back with a repoussé portrait of a gentleman, split bezel engraved in repeated pattern. Silver, champlevé radial Roman numerals, inner quarter ring, center engraved with a village scene. Blued steel "tulip" hand. 29 mm, gilt brass full plate, turned baluster pillars, fusee and gut, verge escapement, circular brass foliot, irregular cock pierced and engraved with wild strawberries and secured by a screw, endless screw and gear mainspring set-up on the back plate.Signed on the movement.Diam. 35 mm. Notes Provenance. Bloch-Pimentel Collection. Literature. Illustrated in Britten, "Old Clocks and Watches and Their Makers", 3rd edition, p.166. An unusual German watch made in the French style. Furthermore, it is a very early example of application of the repoussé technique as applied to watches. Britten, who saw many watches in his day, comments that the portrait is "remarkably well executed". Thomas Wolfgang Arnolt, (also Arnhold and Arnold) (c. 1640 – 1704) Was a very able watchmaker. Abeler gives his marriage date as 1678 and his death date as 1704. Few watches by him are known; one similar to the present watch is in the Hamburg Arts and Crafts Museum.