THE ART OF BREGUET
Geneva, Hotel Des Bergues, Apr 14, 1991
LOT 68
A Madame la Comtesse Alexandrine de Laval "Souscription" watch No. 3634, sold on 26 December 1820, for the sum of 1800 Francs. Small gold "souscription médaillon" watch with single hand.
CHF 30,000 - 40,000
Sold: CHF 48,300
Case: 18 ct., two body, collier form, by Tavernier, No. 3774, engine-turned n grains Orge.
Dial: Engine-turned silver, by Tavernier, signed: " Breguet et Fils", with Roman numerals on a plain
reserve, small sector for slow/fast regulation.
Blued-steel Souscription hand with tapered point.
Movement: Gilt brass, 13"', souscription caliber,
the central barrel with female winding square on
both ends of the arbor, overhanging ruby cylinder
escapement, three-arm plain gold balance with
parachute on the top pivot. Blued-steel Breguet
balance spring.
In very good condition
Diam. 36 mm.
Notes
History: The re air books record that this watch
was delivered for overhaul by a Monsieur Vitor de
Balabine from the Russian Embassy on 19
January 1852.
Exhibition: This watch was exhibited in Paris at the Palais Galliéra, in October 1923, on the centenary of the death of Abraham Louis Breguet, Cat. No. 22. It was lent by Henry Brown, the then owner of the House of Breguet.
Literature: Illustrated and described in G. Daniels,Tlte Art of Breguet, p. 253, fig. 292. Note: A fine example of the smallest size of souscription watch. The case is sealed closed to protect against dust and the back may only be removed after the dial has been lifted, to allow access to a locking screw. Winding is accomplished through a shouldered female square visible in the centre of the engine-turned back and slow/fast regulation is effected by directly adjusting the sector hand on the dial. COMTESSE ALEXANDRINA GRIGORIEWNA LAVAL (1772-1850) Alexandrina Grigoriewna was born on March 18th, 1772, into a family used to displaying its wealth with pride. Her father was Gregoire Vassiliewitch Kozitzky, Secretary of State of Tsarina Catherina II; her mother was one of the four daughters of the famous millionaire Ivan Semenowitch Miasnikoff, and her dowry included 19'000 peasants, a large sum of money, numerous precious objects and factories in the Urals. At the age of twenty-five, Alexandrina Grigoriewna received a marriage proposal from a French expatriate`by the name of Laval. Unfortunate?; for her, the family's youngest daughter had wed an aristocrat, Prince A. Bélosselsky-Bélozersky, and her mother firmly vetoed the proposal. Alexandrina Grigoriewna, deeply in love with Laval, decided that her happiness was worth fighting for. Accordingly, she wrote to the the Tsar himself, who immediately demanded an explanation from the unwilling mother. Mrs Kozitzky justified her refusal by claiming that "Laval is not of our religion, comes from ' God knows where' and hasn't a sufficiently high social standing". Paul I, upon hearing these explanations, laconically ruled that the marriage should proceed: "He is a Christian, I know him, and his standing is quite high enough for a Kozitzky". The ceremony took place in the parish on the very next day, in the year 1799, without any preparation whatsoever. The fiancée brought with her an impressive dowry, which contained, amongst other riches, the Voskressenky factory in the Urals. Before she died in 1833, Mrs Kozitzky made up somewhat for her earlier hesitations, by generously gifting a number of properties to the Lavals "given that they are less wealthy than Princess Bélosselsky". Countess Laval had one son (Vladimir), who joined the Imperial Guard, and four daughters (Katacha, Zenaïda, Sophia and Alexandrine). She died on November 17th, 1850, and was buried in the Saint- Lazare cemetery of the Alexander Newsky monastery. Prince P. Dolgorouky's writings are full of praise for Countess Laval : for her tact, her firmness, but also for her common sense and lively character. She was also well educated, displaying keen interest in the arts, as opposed to her sister Anne who "always looked like a housemaid", thus betraying the mother's modest origins and lack of upbringing. In her residence on the "Quai Anglais", she frequently received poets, writers and art connoisseurs, together with members of the nobility ; Prince Viazemski and Tourgueneff were frequent visitors, and she was a close friend of the celebrated Madame de Staël.
Exhibition: This watch was exhibited in Paris at the Palais Galliéra, in October 1923, on the centenary of the death of Abraham Louis Breguet, Cat. No. 22. It was lent by Henry Brown, the then owner of the House of Breguet.
Literature: Illustrated and described in G. Daniels,Tlte Art of Breguet, p. 253, fig. 292. Note: A fine example of the smallest size of souscription watch. The case is sealed closed to protect against dust and the back may only be removed after the dial has been lifted, to allow access to a locking screw. Winding is accomplished through a shouldered female square visible in the centre of the engine-turned back and slow/fast regulation is effected by directly adjusting the sector hand on the dial. COMTESSE ALEXANDRINA GRIGORIEWNA LAVAL (1772-1850) Alexandrina Grigoriewna was born on March 18th, 1772, into a family used to displaying its wealth with pride. Her father was Gregoire Vassiliewitch Kozitzky, Secretary of State of Tsarina Catherina II; her mother was one of the four daughters of the famous millionaire Ivan Semenowitch Miasnikoff, and her dowry included 19'000 peasants, a large sum of money, numerous precious objects and factories in the Urals. At the age of twenty-five, Alexandrina Grigoriewna received a marriage proposal from a French expatriate`by the name of Laval. Unfortunate?; for her, the family's youngest daughter had wed an aristocrat, Prince A. Bélosselsky-Bélozersky, and her mother firmly vetoed the proposal. Alexandrina Grigoriewna, deeply in love with Laval, decided that her happiness was worth fighting for. Accordingly, she wrote to the the Tsar himself, who immediately demanded an explanation from the unwilling mother. Mrs Kozitzky justified her refusal by claiming that "Laval is not of our religion, comes from ' God knows where' and hasn't a sufficiently high social standing". Paul I, upon hearing these explanations, laconically ruled that the marriage should proceed: "He is a Christian, I know him, and his standing is quite high enough for a Kozitzky". The ceremony took place in the parish on the very next day, in the year 1799, without any preparation whatsoever. The fiancée brought with her an impressive dowry, which contained, amongst other riches, the Voskressenky factory in the Urals. Before she died in 1833, Mrs Kozitzky made up somewhat for her earlier hesitations, by generously gifting a number of properties to the Lavals "given that they are less wealthy than Princess Bélosselsky". Countess Laval had one son (Vladimir), who joined the Imperial Guard, and four daughters (Katacha, Zenaïda, Sophia and Alexandrine). She died on November 17th, 1850, and was buried in the Saint- Lazare cemetery of the Alexander Newsky monastery. Prince P. Dolgorouky's writings are full of praise for Countess Laval : for her tact, her firmness, but also for her common sense and lively character. She was also well educated, displaying keen interest in the arts, as opposed to her sister Anne who "always looked like a housemaid", thus betraying the mother's modest origins and lack of upbringing. In her residence on the "Quai Anglais", she frequently received poets, writers and art connoisseurs, together with members of the nobility ; Prince Viazemski and Tourgueneff were frequent visitors, and she was a close friend of the celebrated Madame de Staël.