$21,850
Le Roy & Fils, Horlogers de la Marine, Palais Royal, 13 & 15 Galerie Montpensier, Paris, and 211 Regent St. , London, No. 46511, circa 1860.Very fine and rare, 18K gold, keyless astronomical minute-repeating watch with full calendar, phases and ages of the moon, center-seconds, dead center-seconds, fifth-second jumping "diablotine" and thermometer, accompanied by a protective case. four-body, "bassine et filets", polished, gold hinged cuvette. white enamel, Roman numerals, outer minute/seconds divisions, four subsidiary sunk dials for days of the week, date, months concentric with diablotine and phases of the moon aperture with sector for its age concentric with Reaumur thermometer scale. Gold "spade" hands. 43 mm, frosted gilt, 32 jewels, gold train, straight line calibrated lever escapement, cut-bimetallic compensation balance with blued steel Breguet balance-sping, repeating on gongs through a slide in the band.Cuvette signed.Diam. 54 mm. Notes This is a rare watch with an unusual set of complications. Typically, the diablotine is run from an independent train, and is only rarely employed in a single train watch, especially during this early period. The combination of center-seconds with dead center-seconds, in addition to the thermometer and full calendar and minute repeating mechanism, suggests that this watch was made on the special request of a wealthy customer.The 1860's was a decade of chronograph development. Adolphe Nicole patented the return-to-zero " Read more…
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2001-11-28
