Important collector's watches, wristw...

Hotel Richemond, Geneva, Apr 13, 2002

LOT 578

Andrew Dunlop, London, hallmarked 1720. Very fine, rare and important, early, 22K gold pair-cased, five-minute repeating watch.

CHF 8,000 - 12,000

EUR 5,500 - 8,200 / USD 4,500 - 7,100

Sold: CHF 36,800

C. Outer: two-body, repoussé with cherubs, scrolls, foliage and four pierced cartouches. Inner: two-body, ?bassine?, band pierced and engraved with inhabited foliage, small engraved rosette in the center, gilt dust cap. D. Gold, champlevé radial Roman numerals, outer minute ring with five-minute Arabic figures on polished cartouches, matte ground, center with scallop shell and foliage in relief. Mounted on gilt brass hinged dial plate. M. 34.5 mm., mounted to the dial plate, gilt brass full plate with turned baluster pillars, fusee and chain, verge escapement, plain brass balance, single-footed gilt cock, symmetrically pierced and engraved with two dolphins and scrolls, mask at the base, diamond endstone, foot slightly faceted, pierced and engraved in asymmetrical foliage scrolling. Repeating on a bell by depressing the pendant. Signed on the dial and the movement, case stamped I·W. Diam. 48.2 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 3-14

Good

Damaged
Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense
Dial: 3-01

Good

HANDS Original

Notes

This is one of the oldest known five-minute repeater, and possibly the oldest. The repeating works with all-or-nothing, very well executed, are all steel, including the star wheel. The watch repeats the hours, quarters and five minutes. In the Ilbert Collection there is a five-minute repeater by Andrew Dunlop, which Cecil Clutton qualified, during a speech at the Antiquarian Horological Society meeting on November 11, 1954, as "by quite a margin the oldest known five-minute repeater and it is also a superb timekeeper. It has all the appearance of dating from the 1720?s". While the Ilbert watch is apparently not hallmarked, the present watch is, with a hallmark of 1720, which means the movement was probably made a few years prior to that, at the latest in 1720, which makes this watch the earliest five-minute repeater known. The outer case is fitted with very nice watch paper of James Rigby, successor to the famous Leroux.