The Art of American Horology Part ll,...

Roosevelt Hotel, Madison Avenue @ 45th Street, Dec 04, 2002

LOT 180

Ulysse Nardin - Locle & Geneva, No. 120722, case No. 614869. Produced circa 1940.Very fine, keyless, silver deck chronometer with 36-hour power reserve indicator and special balance.

USD 3,000 - 4,000

Sold: USD 3,220

C. four-body, "Bassine et filets", polished, hinged silver cuvette. D. white enamel with Roman numerals, outer minute ring, auxiliary sunk dials for the seconds and 36-hour up-and-down indicator. "Spade" blued steel hands. M. 50.5 mm (22'''), frosted and gilt, 21 jewels, straight line lever escapement, anibal-brass Guillaume balance, blued steel balance spring with terminal curve, spring-loaded micrometer regulator, pin-set.Dial, case and movement signed.Diam. 64 mm.


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Grading System
Grade: AA

Very good

Case: 3

Good

Movement: 3*

Good

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense

Dial: 3 - 13 - 21 - 01

Notes

Anibal (acier au nickel pour balanciers), an alloy invented by Dr. Charles Edouard Guillaume, exhibits unusual properties, both in terms of thermal expansion and in changes in elasticity. These properties are very different from those of two other famous alloys invented by Guillaume, Invar and Elinvar. At the end of the 1800's, Guillaume attempted to eliminate the so-called Middle Temperature Error caused by the fact that the change of rate in a timekeeper with a steel-brass bimetallic balance iapproximately a linear function of temperature, while the change of rate caused by change in elasticity of a balance spring is approximately a quadratic function. Thus, it equals zero at only two temperatures, causing secondary error. Countless attempts were made to eliminate Middle Temperature Error, usually by means of auxiliary compensation devices. In 1899, Guillaume noticed that steel with an addition of 44.4% nickel had a negative square coefficient of thermal expansion. This alloy, combied with brass in bimetallic lamina, makes its expansion close to quadratic. Balances with bimetallic rims made of anibal and brass are usually called Guillaume balances, or, as their inventor called them, integral balances. When combined with special balance springs, they exhibit remarkable temperature stability, on occasion not exceeding 1/50 second per day at 1?C.