Only Online Auction
Geneva, Apr 07, 2021
LOT 85
Omega
Pocket chronometer, calibre 43.15 S; “Grade Very Best”; limited production of 300 pieces; 14K yellow gold
CHF 9,800 - 13,000
EUR 9,000 - 12,000 / USD 10,800 - 14,400 / HKD 84,000 - 112,000
14K yellow gold, hunting-case, keyless-winding, round-shaped, pocket chronometer, with subsidiary seconds at 6.
White enamel dial with suspended “Breguet” numerals, with the word “Chronomètre” in red at 12 o’clock.
Cover and case-back polished; case-back engraved in taille-douce (fine cut) with the cypher “G H”; cuvette (dome) engraved in taille-douce (fine cut) with the mention “Chronomètre Omega”.
Movement 18’’’, calibre 43.15 S, “Grade Very Best”, rhodium-plated, 23 jewels, going barrel with safety pinion,gold train of wheels, gold screwed-chatons (setting), straight-line equilibrated lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensated balance with gold poising screws and blued steel Breguet hairspring, index regulator with swan-neck spring and precision-regulating device for fast / slow by means of an eccentric snail, adjusted to 6 positions and temperatures.
| Grading System | |
|---|---|
Grade: AAA |
Excellent |
Case: 2 |
Very good |
Movement: 2* |
Very good Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense |
Dial: 2-01 |
Very good HANDS Original |
Brand Omega, Bienne / Biel
Model “Grade Very Best”
Year 1921-1922 and circa 1935
Movement No. 5 983 813
Case No. 7 608 910
Material 14K yellow gold
Diameter 52.2 mm.
Caliber 43.15 S, “Grade Very Best”, lever escapement, adjusted to 6 positions and temperatures
Signature dial, case and movement
Accessories original fitted box (with the name of the French retailer, Armand Aubert, Joaillier-Orfèvre, Nantes); Bulletin de marche (Watch rate certificate) No. 3 555, from the Bureau Officiel de Contrôle de la Marche des Montres from Bienne / Biel (dated , November 30, 1936)
Notes
Cal. 43.15 S “Grade Very Best”
The “Grade Very Best” replaced the “DDR” as Omega’s highest quality chronometer movement in July 1922. This calibre was made in 600 examples: 300 “Lépine” movements (for open-face watch) and 300 “savonnette” movements (for hunting-case watch).
The term “Very Best” was trademarked by Omega for dials, cases and movements in 1904.
The present watch cost 1 085 Swiss francs in 1929.By way of comparison, that same year Tiffany & Co. sold a Patek Philippe minute-repeating perpetual calendar pocket watch with moon phases, split-seconds chronograph and 30-minute counter for 2 835 Swiss francs, and a standard 18K gold hunting-case pocket watch with 20’’’ movements could be bought for 385 Swiss francs.
The fact that this watch cost nearly 40 % as much as a highly complicated Patek Philippe and over four times as much as that company’s standard production is due to the cost of manufacturing such a high-precision movement.
Precision movements are made to much smaller mechanical tolerances than standard watch movements and often take as long to manufacture and regulate as complicated movements. Precision watches were also prized possessions and were often reserved for the manufacturer’s best clients.
CONDITIONS AND INFORMATION FOR BUYERS
The purchase price payable by a buyer will be the sum of the final bid price plus the buyer’s premium, together with any applicable sales or compensating use tax. In addition to the hammer price, the buyer’s premium is payable as follows: 25% of the hammer price on each lot.Important notice – Special conditions Please look carefully at all the photos as they are an integral part of the description. Any defect not mentioned in the descriptions but visible on the photos will be considered as described and cannot lead to any claim. The dimensions are given as an indication and may slightly differ from the measures mentioned by the manufacturers especially for contemporary watches. The photos are not retouched. Colors may differ from reality. For timepieces, we guarantee neither the functioning nor the precision of the movement, nor the water-resistance of the case. In addition, please note that movements, parts of mechanisms or cases may be incomplete. The lots are sold “as is”, described to the best of our knowledge and cannot be returned. Once the online bid is placed by the bidder, it cannot be cancelled.