The Sandberg Watch Collection

Hotel Richemond, Geneva, Mar 31, 2001

LOT 210

Henry Ester, Geneva, circa 1635.Very fine and rare, small, 20 ct. gold and turquoise-set, single-hand, pendant watch with concealed dial.

CHF 60,000 - 80,000

USD 35,000 - 50,000

C. Two-body, 'bassine fermée', entirely set with graduated turquoises, the largest ones in the centre, the inside of the front cover decorated in blue, green and orange translucent champlevé enamel of a distinctive foliate design. D. Gold, radial Roman hour chapters with half-hour dots, the centre decoration matching that of the cover. Steel 'tulip' hand. M. 23.5 mm o, hinged, gilt brass full plate, turned baluster pillars, two of iron, two of gilt brass, fusee and gut-line, short four-wheel tran with five-leaf pinions, three-spoke arched wheels, verge escapement, steel two-arm circular foliot, elongated gilt brass cock pierced and engraved in asymmetrical floral decoration.Signed on the movement.Diam. 29 mm. Published in the Sandberg book, pages 60-61.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 4 - 21
Movement: 4 - 8*
Dial: 4 - 6 - 21 - 01

Notes

It is extremely rare to find gold watches from this period decorated with graduated precious stones. Another similar watch, by the same maker, with the same decoration, but with red garnets instead of turquoises, is in the Musée National de la Renaissance, Château d'Ecouen, France, Inv. E.Cl. 20708.According 'The Dictionnaire des Horlogers Genevois', by Osvaldo Patrizzi, Antiquorum Editions, Geneva, 1998, the maker is probably Henri Ester Fils, Master watchmaker from 1631 to 1676. He was the son of Jean-Henri Ester (1594-1669), a very famous watchmaker in Geneva, who specialised in pendant and form watches, and had as pupils Jacob Delacroix, in 1639, and Amy Deneria, in 1665.