A Monsieur Francis Baring. "Sympathique" Clock No.257,with the accompanying Watch No.4745,sold on 1 July 1845,for the sum of 9000 Francs. Gilt bronze mounted "Sympathique" mantel clock, No. 247, with quarter-striking and perpetual date calendar. Gold "Sympathique" watch, with jump hours, quarter-repeating and winding indicator, constructed on the principles of the "gardetemps". | THE ART OF BREGUET | Geneva, Hotel Des Bergues, 14th April 1991

THE ART OF BREGUET

Geneva, Hotel Des Bergues, Apr 14, 1991

LOT 100

A Monsieur Francis Baring. "Sympathique" Clock No.257,with the accompanying Watch No.4745,sold on 1 July 1845,for the sum of 9000 Francs. Gilt bronze mounted "Sympathique" mantel clock, No. 247, with quarter-striking and perpetual date calendar. Gold "Sympathique" watch, with jump hours, quarter-repeating and winding indicator, constructed on the principles of the "gardetemps".

CHF 0 - 0

Sold: CHF 1,216,250

Case : Bronzed cabinet, glazed on four sides, with applied gilt brass mounts of Corinthian pilasters, acanthus and palm foliage, standing on four foliate scroll volute feet, the top with a cradle to hold the sympathigue watch. Dial : Matt silvered, signed : "Breguet, Neveu et Cie., Breveté No. 247", with Roman numerals, and a small subsidiary dial for the perpetual date. Gilt brass reeded bezel, the surrounding plaque engraved with scrolls and foliage. Bluedsteel Breguet hands.
Movement : Brass plates, two-train, 8-day going with Graham dead-beat escapement, beating half-seconds, the spring-suspended gridiron compensation pendulum with gilt-brass bob, the centre engraved with scrollwork. Quarter-striking on bells, the strike train also providing power for re-winding the watch. Perpetual date calendar with a one wheel system mounted on the back plate. Re-winding and setting to time of the watch carried out twice daily, at mid-day and midnight, with the ability to correct a time difference of up to plus or minus 15 minutes.
In very good condition. Dim. Overall height including the watch: 471 mm. Width : 250 mm. Case: 18 ct., three piece, uatre baguettes form, by Marchand, No. 374, engine-turned r grains d'orge, the back turning to reveal the winding square. Dial: Engine-turned silver, signed: "Breguet Breveté, No. 4745", with Roman numerals on a plain reserve, subsidiary sectors for up-and-down scale calibrated for 36 hours on the left, and slow/fast regulation on the right. Gold Breguet hands.
Movement: Gilt brass, 18"', bridge caliber, counterpoised straight line lever escapement with long lever, bimetallic compensation balance, with elastic suspension on both pivots. Blued-steel Breguet balance spring. Wilding and hand-setting carried out by the clock through flush-mounted push-pins in the band of the case. Repeating on a single gong with one hammer striking through an intermediate spring steel block, with slide in the band.
In very good condition. Diam. 50 mm. Estimate: SFr. * * *

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History : According to the fabrication records, the construction of the watch and clock from the start to the day of final delivery covered a period of 17 years. Although first entered into the fabrication books in March1,1828,continuous work did not begin on the watch until October,1837,to be completed in all except detail by April,] 841. The clock was begun in 1836 but not delivered until 1 July 1845; even then some further work remained to be done, as the cradle supporting the watch was actually gilded on 30 December 1845. The clock and watch returned for adjustments and overhaul on several occasions up until 1849, and there are indications in the repair books that a watchmaker from Breguet may have attended to the clock at Sir Francis Baring's house.Indeed in June 1847,the clock and watch were returned to Breguet simply for storage during the summer months(Sir Francis Baring was in the habit of passing the winters in Paris and the summers in England).

Hystory (continued): Abraham-Louis Breguet conceived the idea of the "Sympathique" whilst exiled in Switzerland during the French Revolution. They were his greatest "flight of fancy" , and were not designed to advance the science of timekeeping, but to demonstrate his abilities as a craftsman, to please his most discerning clients and increase his stature as an horologist. He, himself summed up the motive behind their construction in a letter sent to his son, dated 26th June, 1795 (translation): "I have great pleasure my friend, in telling you that I have made a very important invention, but about which you must be very discreet, even about the idea. I have invented a means of setting a watch to time, and regulating it, without anyone having to do it ... This is how it works : you have to have a second clock or a marine arranged to receive the watch... Then, every night on going to bed, you put the watch into the clock. In the morning, or one hour later, it will be exacly to time with the clock. It is not even necessary to open the watch. I expect from this the greatest promotion of our fame and fortune". In the pamphlet published by Breguet in 1823, intended to explain the extent of his production, he referred again to the sympathiques (in literal translation):..... '...even if one deliberately interferes with the regulation of the watch, or if it gains or loses a few minutes, in fact anything up to a quarter of an hour, it is sufficient simply to place the watch in its holder, before mid-day or mid-night, for it is at these times that the hands will be seen to move instantly, either forwards or backwards to exactly the time given by the clock." In the pamphlet Breguet does not describe sympathique watches that are set to time and wound by the clock, only those that are set to time and regulated. In fact, the earliest known clock with the re-winding feature was actually made in 1812 by Rabi, one of Breguet's ablest pupils, but in general they all date from after Abraham-Louis' death. The late Claude Breguet recorded only seven sympathique watches with clocks in his monograph, of which two were designed for use with marine chronometers, and only four were capable of re-winding the watch. It is likely that no more than ten of the more complicated design were in fact completed.
FRANCIS BARING 3rd Baron Ashburton (1800 - 1868) The second son of Alexander Baring (1774 -1848), the 1st Baron, Francis Baring was expected to take over the running of the bank. He appeared to be imminently suitable for the job, being described in glowing terms by Notte: "Beautiful nature had endowed this man...with so lavish a hand, that it might almost be termed spendthrift profusion." He was intelligent, quick and perceptive with a phenomenal memory and 'iron strength spendthrift Despite such apparent strength of character, Francis Baring's career as a banker was not to be a great success, largely as a result of a disastrous sortie to Mexico Sent there by his father in 1825, he found the country little to his taste, telling his friend Humphrey Mildmay:" This country is a desert", and requesting that he be sent six boxes of Seidlitz powders and "a stout hunting crop with bronze handle, the dogs are wolves, and one's legs are always in danger." What exactly happened next is not sure, but the results were to lead to the effective retirement of Francis from an active participation in the bank's management. Largely due to the oppressive climate, be took to drink as a comforter, and fell into the company of some unscrupulous businessmen. Convinced of the investment potential, he purchased large tracts of land in Northern Mexico, committing the bank to pay out some £ 40,000 on deposit. Recalled to London, he remained a partner after 1830, but now went into politics, again, with only limited success. In 1833, Francis Baring married Hortense, daughter of the Duke of Bassano, and subsequently spent much of bis time at his house in the Place Vendôme in Paris, where he would have made the acquaintance of Breguet. The title - Baron of Ashburton - had initially passed to Francis' brother William upon the death of the first Baron, Alexander, in 1848. William's only son Alexander having died at the age of two, upon the death of the former in 1864, the title passed to Francis who became the third Baron. This s Sympathique clock has descended through the family of his wife, the Dukes of Bassano.
Note: The perpetual calendar system used in the clock is o f a most unusual form, with all the mechanism mounted upon a single wheel. A full description and drawings are provided by Moinet in Traité d'Horlogerie Moderne, page 415, article 1515. Moinet admits to a fault in the design,but points out that the details would become clear during construction,suggesting that final adjustment could be carried out by trial and error.In principle the system works by using the intermediate planetary gearing to advance the " pin-wheel".The pins themselves are of different lengths and engage the requisite number of the steel dog teeth which are pivoted together in a sandwich. This clock has been restored to perfect condition in the workshops of Monsieur Parmigiani, Mesure et Art du Temps S.A. , 33 Rue de l' Hôpital, 2114 Fleurier.