Important Collectors’ Wristwatches, P...

Geneva, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Du Rhône, Nov 12, 2006

LOT 147

?Country Scene? Frères Nicole, Geneva, No. 11556, circa 1840. Very fine large silver gilt musical snuffbox decorated with painting on canvas, playing three tunes. Accompanied by leather fitted box. To be sold without reserve

CHF 45,000 - 55,000

EUR 28,000 - 35,000 / USD 36,000 - 45,000

Sold: CHF 49,560

C. Three-body, rectangular, the hinged lid revealing a compartment decorated with a landscape painted on canvas with protective glass, bezel chased in floral and foliate pattern, engine-turned side panels and base, right panel with a melody switch, activating button in the front. M. 96 x 55 mm, pinned cylinder type with a comb of 74 tuned vibrating blades, two-arm fly worm-gear governor, tune-changing by means of a cam acting directly on a spring-loaded cylinder. Signed on the comb in typical Nicole manner. Dim. 115 x 92 x 40 mm. Property of a Swiss Gentleman


LOADING IMAGES
Click to full view
Image
Grading System
Grade: AAA

Excellent
Case: 3

Good
Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense
Dial: -

Notes

Such large musical snuffboxes were rare at the time; equally rare is the painted on canvas decoration. Frères Nicole Watchmakers and makers of musical pieces who later became specialized in musical pieces and musical boxes. 1828-1844. They signed a petition for the construction of a new Observatory in Geneva in 1829. Their recorded addresses are: Etuves 130, rue du Cendrier, passage des Bergues (1831) and passage du Cendrier 118 bis (1844). ?Dictionnaire des Horlogers Genevois, by Osvaldo Patrizzi, Antiquorum Editions, 1998. ?Dictionnaire des Horlogers Genevois, by Osvaldo Patrizzi, Antiquorum Editions, 1998.