Important Collectors’ Wristwatches, P...

Hong Kong,the Ritz Carlton Hotel,harbour Room, 3rd Floor, Nov 25, 2006

LOT 206

"Feeding The Rabbits" Ilbery, London, No. 6138, the enamel attributed to Jean-Francois-Victor Dupont. Made for the Chinese market, circa 1815. Extremely fine and very rare, 18K gold, painted on enamel and pearl-set, center seconds pocket watch with duplex escapement. Property of a European Collector

HKD 550,000 - 700,000

USD 70,000 - 90,000 / EUR 55,000 - 70,000

Sold: HKD 2,309,000

C. Two-body, the fixed band, pendant and bow, with royal blue, pale blue and white champlevé enamelled decoration, bezels set with split-pearls, the back with a fine painted on enamel scene depicting three children feeding a rabbit, one cradling a baby rabbit, wooded landscape. Hinged gold cuvette engraved with scrols and a central rosette.
D. White enamel with radial Roman numerals, outer minute and seconds divisions, Arabic quarter-hour numerals. Gold ?ovoid? hands.
M. 49 mm., gilt brass, Chinese calibre, fully engraved with floral decoration, standing barrel, single wheel duplex escapement, plain five-arm polished steel balance, flat balance spring, diamond endstone, index regulator. Movement signed. Diam. 60 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 2

Very good
Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense
Dial: 2-01

Very good

HANDS Original

Notes

The scene painted on this watch is one of the charming depictions of children with their pets that were so popular at the beginning of the 19th Century. Many of these images derive from English engravings and prints of the period by artists such as Francis Wheatley, William Hamilton and George Morland. For other examples of watches with similar scenes, see: Antiquorum, Hong Kong, July 10, 2005, lot 366; Antiquorum, Geneva, May 2, 2000, lot 386.
Jean-Francois-Victor Dupont (1785-1863) Probably the finest painter on enamel of his age working in Geneva. His work included portraits of distinguished figures (King George IV, Henry VI etc.), as well as boxes and particularly watches destined for the Chinese Market. For the latter he cooperated frequently with Ilbery as well as Piguet & Meylan. A particular feature of his work was his ability to paint a group of figures posed in the same plane without giving an impression of overcrowding. His distinctive palette may well derive from the fact that he mixed his own colors. For an article on the work of Jean-Francois-Victor Dupont, see: Antiquorum, Vox Magazine, Summer 2006, p. 10-15.