Geneva, Nov 06, 2022

LOT 250

ROUX, BORDIER & Cie POCKET WATCH WITH ENAMEL DECORATION IN THE MANNER OF JEAN-LOUIS RICHTER WITH VISIBLE BALANCE 18K GOLD

CHF 8,000 - 14,000

EUR 8,300 - 14,400 / USD 8,000 - 14,000 / HKD 63,000 - 110,000

Sold: CHF 9,375

Very fine and rare, 18K yellow gold, silver, enamel and diamond-set, open-face, key-winding, round-shaped, “Directoire” pocket watch with visible paste-set balance; made for the Spanish market.

Royal blue flinqué enamel (translucent enamel over guilloché engine-turning) case-back with gold paillon and rose-cut diamonds flower garlands; in the centre, the aperture for the balance inside a silver frame border set with rose-cut diamonds; on the right, a young lady; on the left, an old tower near a stream; silver border set with rose-cut diamonds; the painting on enamel on gold attributable to Jean-Louis Richter (1766-1841), Geneva.

White enamel dial with radial Roman numerals; yellow gold paste-set hands.

Movement 20’’’, full plate, gilded brass, with fusee and chain, verge escapement, monometallic balance and blued steel flat hairspring; mirror-polished steel cock with a mirror-polished plate on which the balance oscillates.



Grading System
Case: 3

Good

Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense

Dial: 3-01

Good

HANDS Original

Brand Roux, Bordier & Cie, Switzerland, Retailed by Aranaga, Bilbao (Spain)

Year Circa 1790

Movement No. 9 109

Case No. 9 109 (by “P C”, Geneva)

Material 18K yellow gold

Diameter 54 mm.

Caliber 20’’’, fusee and chain, verge escapement

Signature Dial, case and movement

Notes

Roux, Bordier & Cie

The Bordier brothers were associated watchmakers in Geneva as early as 1794. In 1815, they worked at the Grand Mézel. In 1794, they took Roux and Romand into partnership, establishing the company Bordier, Roux, Romand & Cie. Between 1794 and 1811, they were specialised in automaton repeating watches as well as complicated or skeletonized watches, with calendar, often decorated with painted enamels, pearls and gemstones.

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Richter, Jean-Louis (1766-1841)

Learned his art in Geneva under David-Etienne Roux and Philippe-Samuel-Théodore Roux, becoming a most renowned enamel painter. His speciality was the painting of landscapes and particularly lake-side scenes and marine-scapes, often representing ships in a harbour or battles with fighting Men-of-War, but, on occasion, also portraits and hunting scenes. He did not often sign his work, but it is clearly recognised as being in his hand from the style and quality of the painting. He applied his art principally to watch cases and snuff-boxes and these were largely destined for the Chinese, Turkish, British and Italian markets. In 1828, he was in partnership with Aimé-Julien Troll (1781-1852) and one can find work signed “Richter et Troll”. Richter, like other great enamel painters of the time, often found inspiration for his work from paintings or engravings by the artists then in fashion particularly Claude Vernet or the romanticised English and Irish rural life.