Important Collectors’ Wristwatches Po...

Geneva, Hotel Des Bergues, Oct 21, 1995

LOT 848

Morin á Marchinville, circa 1972. Exceptionaly fine and rare gilt brass and enamel watch, the case attributed to Jean Mussard.

CHF 25,000 - 30,000

C. Double body outer gilt brass with glazed back, the bezels chased with scrolling foliage. Inner double body, bassine with split bezel and loosering pendant, enamelled with a very fine scene painted in the manner of Mussard, depicting "La Charité Romaine", the frieze of four small landscapes after Gabriel Perrel's engravings, the interior painted en grisaille with a rural scene in which a traveller walks along the bank of a river towards a bridge leading to a hamlet with forest behind. D. Gold with Roman numerals on white enamel cartouches and outer Arabic minute ring, the centre enamelled with a painted scene depicting Venus with Cupid . Blued steel "poker and tulip" hand. M. Hinged gilt brass full plate with early Egyptian pillars, fusee with chain, verge escapement, plain steel three-arm balance, flat balance spring and gilt brass English type cock pierced and engraved with inhabited foliage. Signed on the back plate. hl very good condition. Diam. 55 mm.


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Notes

The style and quality of the enamel painting on this case can be attributed with certainty to the Geneva enameller Jean Mussard (1681-1754) master Goldsmith in 1699. Mussard was at his best, at least the equal of the Huaud family, although many less examples of his work are known, indicating that he probably worked largely on his own, without the benefit of a "studio". Watch cases from the Geneva school enamelled on copper are much rarer than those executed on gold, and it has usually been considered that this was a sign of lower cost and inferior quality. That is clearly not the case with this particular watch, which exhibits a delicacy of colouring, smoothness of finish and degree of artistry that is quite exceptional. In common with a few other copper enamelled watches of the period, it can be noted that the case is of somewhat larger size than contemporary examples on gold and it may well be that better results were obtained, in terras of retaining the shape during firing, if copper was used as a base above a certain diameter. Luc MORIN -MARCHINVILLE was bora in Blois in 1659, he died in Geneva in 1739. Refugee in in Geneva, he became a resident in 1688 and Bourgeois of Geneva 1710. He formed three pupils: Barthelemy Lesage in 1679, Jean- Pierre Bouet in 1708 and Gédéon Audéoud in 1726.