The Sandberg Watch Collection

Hotel Richemond, Geneva, Mar 31, 2001

LOT 176

The Rose.Piguet & Meylan, No. 3564, Geneva, circa 1820.Magnificent and extremely rare, 18 ct. gold and enamel, pearl-set, centre-seconds, two-train, musical automaton watch, playing on the hour and on request, designed as a pink rose, made for the Chinese market.

C. Two-body, the back very finely painted with the underside of the rose, showing sumptuous pink petals and two green leaves, the pearl-set stem, which forms the pendant, terminates with five graduated pearl-set petals at the centre of the rose. The bezel painted with rose petals, the edge decorated with a geometrical pattern in dark blue enamel and set with half pearls. D. White, eccentric Roman hour chapter ring with outer minute divisions set at the top of the background painting depicting aarden with roses and forget-me-nots, the sea beyond with the Temple of Love on a cliff. The foreground with varicoloured gold automata of a lady playing the harp, while Cupid accompanies her on a lyre, a nesting dove behind him. Blued-steel Breguet hands. M. 35.4 mm o, gilt brass bridge calibre, fixed barrel, cylinder escapement, gold three-arm balance, blued-steel flat balance spring. The music and automaton train driven by a fixed barrel, a revolving disc with 16 tuned teeth alternating on botsides of the disc, playing every hour or on request, Breguet-type continuous stop work, a ratchet wheel cam with irregular teeth mounted on the disc driving the automata, the set-off bolt at 7 o'clock, silent/music lever under the bezel at 5 o'clock.Stamped with the maker's mark and the number on the plate under the dial.Diam. 48 mm. Published in the Sandberg book, pages 460-461.