Only Online Auction
Hong Kong, Mar 09, 2022
LOT 40
Cartier
Art Deco dress-watch, “couteau” (knife-edge); 18K yellow gold
HKD 17,700 - 35,400
EUR 2,000 - 4,000 / CHF 2,100 - 4,200 / USD 2,300 - 4,600
Sold: HKD 30,000
18K yellow gold, open-face, keyless-winding, “couteau” (knife-edge), round-shaped, extra-thin, Art Deco dress-watch, with subsidiary seconds at 6.
Gold colour dial with suspended Arabic numerals.
Case-back polished.
17’’’, gilded brass, going barrel, straight-line lever escapement, cut compensated balance and blued steel hairspring with terminal curve, polished steel index-regulator.
| Grading System | |
|---|---|
Grade: AA |
Very good |
Case: 3-8 |
Good Slightly scratched |
Movement: 3* |
Good Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense |
Dial: 3-6-01 |
Good Slightly oxidized HANDS Original |
Brand Cartier, Paris
Model “Montre de poche Couteau”
Year circa 1920
Movement No. unnumbered
Case No. 8 722
Material 18K yellow gold
Diameter 47.8 mm.
Caliber 16’’’ ½, lever escapement, 8 adjustments
Signature dial, case and movement
Notes
Cartier, “Montre Couteau”
“Couteau” is the term used by Cartier in their manufacturing records to described this type of watches with knife-edge cases, open-face or hunting-case models.
The case of the hunting-case version is of an unusual construction with its two-body (cover and case-back); the movement is housed in an adapter ring whose upper part forms the bezel.
Cartier sourced their “Couteau” watch movements from several suppliers. These included, as of 1935, LeCoultre (future Jaeger-LeCoultre), who had just invented a movement of 7.75 douzièmes (only 2 mm. thick), and, Vacheron & Constantin, who from 1940 utilized a movement which was seven douzièmes (only 1.31 mm. thick). This allowed them to produce incredibly thin watches.
These watches – with less than 4 mm. thick for the open-face version and less 5 mm. version for the hunting-case version – are among the thinnest mechanical watches ever produced.
CONDITIONS AND INFORMATION FOR BUYERS
The purchase price payable by a buyer will be the sum of the final bid price plus the buyer’s premium, together with any applicable sales or compensating use tax. In addition to the hammer price, the buyer’s premium is payable as follows: 25% of the hammer price on each lot.Important notice – Special conditions Please look carefully at all the photos as they are an integral part of the description. Any defect not mentioned in the descriptions but visible on the photos will be considered as described and cannot lead to any claim. The dimensions are given as an indication and may slightly differ from the measures mentioned by the manufacturers especially for contemporary watches. The photos are not retouched. Colors may differ from reality. For timepieces, we guarantee neither the functioning nor the precision of the movement, nor the water-resistance of the case. In addition, please note that movements, parts of mechanisms or cases may be incomplete. The lots are sold “as is”, described to the best of our knowledge and cannot be returned. Once the online bid is placed by the bidder, it cannot be cancelled.