OMEGAMANIA
Geneva, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Du Rhône, Apr 15, 2007
LOT 105
?CHRONOMÈTRE ? GRADE VERY BEST?
Omega, ?Chronomètre?, No. 5983741, case No. 7575881, Ref. OV 241 YV. Sold on
November 30, 1929.
Very fine, rare and important, hunting-cased, 14K yellow gold keyless pocket
chronometer, one of a series of 300 pieces made in 1921. Accompanied by the original fitted box and
a ?Bulletin de Marche, Epreuve de Première Classe? from the Observatoire de Bienne, dated August
27th, 1929. This watch is sold with a Certificate of Authenticity and 2-year Omega guarantee.
CHF 7,000 - 10,000
EUR 4,400 - 6,300 / USD 5,800 - 8,300
Sold: CHF 21,240
C. Four-body, ?bassine?, hinged gold cuvette engraved ?Chronomètre Omega?. D. White enamel with Breguet numerals, outer minute divisions, subsidiary seconds, painted Omega name and sign in black and the words ?Chronomètre? in red at 12 o?clock. M. Cal. 43.15 S Very Best, rhodium-plated, ?fausses côtes? decoration, 23 jewels, most in screwed gold chatons, safety pinion, bimetallic cut compensation balance, adjusted to 6 positions and temperatures, blued steel Breguet balance spring, eccentric cam micrometer regulator, gold wheel train. Dial, case and movement signed. Diam. 52 mm. Property of a Swiss Collector
| Grading System | |
|---|---|
Grade: |
|
Case: 2 |
Very good |
Movement: 2 |
Very good |
Dial: 2-01 |
Very good HANDS Original |
Notes
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-second
chronograph and 30-minute counter for 2,835 Swiss francs, and a standard 18K gold hunting-cased
pocket watch with 20??? movement 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.
Cal. 43.15 S Very Best
The ?Very Best? grade replaced the ?DDR? as Omega?s highest quality
chronometer movement in July 1922. This caliber was made in 600 examples,
300 Lépine and 300 Savonnette.
The term ?Very Best? was trademarked by Omega for dials, cases, and
movements, in 1904.