Important Collectors’ Wristwatches, P...

Geneva, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Du Rhône, May 13, 2007

LOT 272

Yellow Gold "Minute Repeater" Vacheron Constantin, Genève, No. 877948, case No. 660667, Ref. 30020. Made in 2001, sold in 2002. Extremely fine, rare and important, astronomic, minute-repeating, 18K yellow gold gentleman?s wristwatch with perpetual calendar, moon phases and an 18K yellow gold Vacheron Constantin buckle. Accompanied by the original fitted box and certificate.

CHF 140,000 - 170,000

EUR 87,000 - 105,000 / USD 115,000 - 140,000

Sold: CHF 233,000

C. Three-body, solid, polished, stepped bezel, transparent case back, teardrop lugs, domed sapphire crystal. D. Two-tone satiné silver with applied yellow gold faceted indexes, sunk guilloché subsidiary dials for the days of the month, of the week, the months, the leap year, sector for the age of the moon, aperture for the moon phases. Yellow gold "baton" hands. M. Cal. 1755, rhodium-plated, "fausses côtes" decoration, 30 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, beryllium balance adjusted to temperatures and 5 positions, shock absorber, self-compensating flat balance spring, swan-neck micrometer regulator. Repeating on gongs by activating slide on the band. Dial, case and movement signed. Diam 37 mm. Thickness 10 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 2

Very good
Movement: 1

As new
Dial: 1-01

As new

HANDS Original

Notes

What is a Minute Repeater? A minute repeating watch tells the time both visually and audibly. A slide on the side of the case, usually near the 9, will activate two hammers in the movement. These hammers strike two gongs curled within the case. First one hammer strikes a gong of lower tonality; it will count out the hours. Then both hammers will strike both gongs alternatively to count out the quarter hours after that hour, and then the second hammer alone striking a gong of higher tonality will count out the minutes after that quarter hour. The repeating mechanism was developed by Daniel Quare. In 1687, he had patented a mechanism that sounded the hours and the quarter hours. The early repeaters used bells. At the end of the 18th century, two bent-wire gongs became the more popular mechanism. In 1892, the first minute repeater wristwatch was produced by Omega, a model with a round-shaped case.