Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces

Geneva, Nov 08, 2014

LOT 657

NICOLE NIELSEN - MINUTE REPEATING & SPLIT- SECONDS CHRONOGRAPH Nicole Nielsen & Co., 14 Soho Square, London, No. 12474. The case with London hallmarks for 1911-12. Extremely fine and equally rare, large, heavy 18K gold, minute-repeating, keyless half-hunting cased pocket watch with split-seconds chronograph and 60-minute register.

Four-body, "pommes et filet", massive, by Robert Benson North, mastermark RN, polished, swivel anti-theft pendant, mastermark CH, the front cover with glazed aperture and radial black champlevé enamel Roman numerals, button at 11 for the start/stop and return-to-zero functions of the chronograph, button at 1 for the split-second and rejoin. Hinged gold cuvette. "Best venetian tint" enamel, by master dial maker Willis, radial Roman numerals, outer minute divisions, outermost seconds divided into fifths, subsidiary 60-minute register at 12, subsidiary seconds symmetrically at 6. Blued steel spade hour and minute hands, gold star chronograph hand. 44 mm.(19'''), frosted gilt, 3/4-plate, 18 jewels, some in screwed chatons, lateral counterpoised lever escapement, cut-bimetallic compensation balance with gold temperature and mean time adjustment screws, overcoiled Breguet balance spring, diamond endstone, Nicole Nielsen chronograph mechanism, repeating on gongs activated by a slide in the band. Movement signed and numbered.