Important Watches, Collector's Wristw...

The Ritz-carlton Hotel, Jun 06, 2004

LOT 385

Lhoest, Paris, No. 693, circa 1820. Very fine and rare 18K multicolored gold, paste-set, small quarter-repeating lady?s pendant watch, accompanied by a gold key.

HKD 60,000 - 80,000

EUR 6,500 - 8,500 / USD 7,500 - 10,000

C. Four-body, very elaborately decorated with applied varicolored gold forming floral pattern with paste-set petals, paste-set rosette in the center, graduated granulation on edges, whole on finely matted gold background, band, bezel, bow, and pendant en suite, gold hinged cuvette. D. Gold, champlevé radial Roman numerals, outer minute dot divisions, engine-turned center, outermost engraved with repeated pattern. Blued steel Breguet hands. M. 33 mm (14???). frosted gilt, frosted gilt full-plate with cylindrical pillars, fusee and chain, verge escapement brass balance with flat balance spring, continental cock, repeating on gongs by depressing the pendant.Signed on the cuvette.Diam. 41 mm.


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Grading System
Grade: AAA

Excellent
Case: 3

Good
Movement: 3*

Good

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

Notes

Granulation, a technique using tiny beads of gold, was employed, and probably invented, by the ancient Etruscans. The present lot employs real granulation, which is rare. Most of the watches from the period using this method employed a technique in which ready-to-apply gold beads wires were soldered onto the surface, thereby forming the desired pattern. Lhoest is recorded by Tardy as working in Paris around 1820 at rue du Fg St-Honoré.