Important Watches, Wristwatches and C...

Hong Kong, Hotel Furama Kempinski, Jun 09, 1997

LOT 13

Ernest Tissot, Paris, circa 1900. "La Montre du XXeme siecle" Fine and unusual 18K pink gold hunting cased, keyless watch with 24-hour dial, duo-decimal and decimal minutes and centre seconds.

HKD 7,000 - 8,000

USD 900 - 1,000

Sold: HKD 29,900

C. Four body, massive, "bassine", polished, the back engraved: La Montre du XXeme siecle, the cover with a dedication. Hinged gold cuvette. D. White enamel with Arabic 24-hour ring on the border, inner concentric 60- and 100-rings for both seconds and minutes. Gold "spade" hands. M 18 "' , nickel plated three-quarter plate, "fausses cotes " decoration, 18 jewels, counterpoised straight line lever escapement, cut bimetallic balance, Breguet balance spring. Signed on the dial and movement. In very good condition.


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Notes

New Decimal Time Almost exactly 100 years after the failure of Republican time, which the Convention Nationale tried to impose in France in 1793, together with the Metric System in 1793, at the Congress of the Societe Francai.se de Geographic, in Tours, Mr. J. de Rey Pailhade, the President of the Societe de Geograjhie of Toulouse, drew the attention of his colleagues to the advantage of decimal ti me and of decimal division of the circle, for scientific calculations and drawing of geographic maps. This was the beginning of a crusade which led to a bill, introduced at the Ghantbre des Deputes by Mlvi. Delaune and Gouzy, in 1899: Art. 1 - The clay is to be divided into 24 hours, each hour into 100 minutes and each minute into 100 seconds. Art. 2 - Decimal time will be official in France as of January 1st, 1900. Art. 3 - The longitude will be calculated from 0 to 240 degrees from East to West, starting from a first meridian to be determined by the Acadentie des Sciences. Art. 4 - Legal time, for France and its colonies, calculated from the 1st meridian, according to Art. 3 above, will be official as of January 1st, 1900. The conunission's speaker suggested to the Assembly to consider the adoption of decimal time in order to complete the Decimal System, introduced by the Convention Nationale. Decimal time was intended to be put into practice in time for the Exposition Universe/le in Paris. Different attempts were made to produce watches according to the new decimal time which, in spite of a strong campaign headed by Repailhard and several scientists, was in fact still not implemented at the start of World War 1 and was subsequently abandoned forever.