424,800 HKD
“Titus and Berenice” Ilbery, London, No. 7078. Made for the Chinese market, circa 1820. Very fine and rare, 18K gold and painted on enamel pocket watch with duplex escapement. Two-body, the spring-loaded back cover very finely painted with a scene depicting Titus and Berenice in a classical wooded landscape and a dark green guilloché enamel background, the bezels and pendant with green, white, blue and black champlevé enamel geometrical patterns. Hinged gilt metal cuvette mounted to the movement ring. White enamel, radial Roman numerals, outer minute track, subsidiary seconds. Gold “heart” hands. 49 mm, gilt brass, fully engraved “Chinese” caliber, free-standing barrel, duplex escapement, plain five-arm flat-rim steel balance, flat blued steel balance spring, diamond endstone, index regulator. Movement signed. Diam. 59 mm. Notes Titus and Berenice Titus, the elder son of emperor Vespasian, was born in AD 39. From AD 61 to 63 he served in Germany and Britain as military tribune. He then returned to Rome and married Arrecina Tertulla, the daughter of a former commander of the Praetorian guard. A year later Arrecina died and Titus married Marcia Furnilla. She was of a distinguished family which had connections to opponents of Nero. After the failure of the Pisonian conspiracy, Titus thought it best not to be connected in any way with any potential plotters and hence divorced Marcia in AD 65. The same year Titus was appointed quaestor, and became commander one of his father
Auctioneer:
Antiquorum
Date:
2006-04-23
