Important Watches, Collector's Wristw...

The Ritz-carlton Hotel, Jun 06, 2004

LOT 150

Louis Elisée Piguet, No. 1208, retailed by H. Lamb, West Hartlepool, made for the Indian market circa 1890. Very fine and rare 18K ?.755? gold, keyless, double-train, Grande et Petite Sonnerie clockwatch with trip minute-repeat.

HKD 100,000 - 125,000

EUR 11,000 - 13,000 / USD 13,000 - 16,000

Sold: HKD 195,500

C. Five-body, massive, ?bassine?, polished, back engraved with horse head, gold hinged cuvette, gold bolt at 2 o?clock to switch from full to quarter striking, and another at 11 for striking/silence. D. White enamel, Arabic numerals, outer minute divisions, subsidiary sunk seconds. Blued steel ?spade? hands. M. 45 mm (20???), frosted gilt, Mairettandem winding system, 30 jewels, straight line calibrated lever escapement, cut-bimetallic compensation balance with blued steel Breguet balance spring, Henri Golay striking system, repeating on gongs through activating slide in the band.Signed on the movement under the dial.Diam. 54 mm.


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: 3 - 01

Notes

Louis Elisée Piguet (1836 ? 1924) From Le Brassus made a number of exceptional timepieces, such as a ?grande sonnerie? with 7 hammers. Some of the most complicated watches sold in Glashütte employed L. E. Piguet movements, while firms such as Patek Philippe, Vacheron & Constantin, and Breguet employed his movements on occasion. He improved chronographs, invented the fixed star repeating mechanism, and improved the keyless winding system. When Ami LeCoultre Piguet received a commission to build the so-called ?Merveilleuse?, a watch with 24 functions and complications, he chose Louis-Elisée Piguet as his partner. One of the most talented watchmakers of the end of the 19th century, he was respected by his peers and served on a number of horological committees. His company, later renamed Frédéric Piguet SA, has survived and continues the tradition of making high-quality complicated timepieces. Literature: ?Horlogers et montres exceptionnels de la Vallée de Joux?, Daniel Aubert, Neuchâtel, 1997.