Pocket Watches · Pocket watch
18K pink gold Patek Philippe Quarter Repeater pocket, c. 1890
- Maker / attribution
- Patek Philippe (maker)
- Date
- c. 1890
- Historical period
- Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Pocket watch
- Materials / technique
- gold
- Auction house
- LiveAuctioneers auction archive
- Lot
- Item 102178454
- Credit line
- Auction lot record: lot 1097, Fine & Decorative Arts - Day 1, Dan Morphy Auctions (2021), via LiveAuctioneers
- Catalogue title (original)
- 18K PINK GOLD PATEK PHILIPPE QUARTER REPEATER POCKET (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by LiveAuctioneers auction archive (lot Item 102178454), this is a pocket watch by Patek Philippe, made in Switzerland, dated c. 1890. The Atlas places it in the Industrial Revolution period (1850 – 1900) of its Pocket Watches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: gold. The record is illustrated with 4 photographs.
Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.
Catalogue description
Lot description — Dan Morphy Auctions
18k pink gold fine Patek Philippe Swiss quarter-hour repeating open face pocket watch for A.H. Rodanet, Paris. Circa 1890's. Case diameter measures 49mm. Beautifully hand engraved monogram to back cover, (WR or RW). Case is fully hallmarked and numbered. Cuvette marked "No. 11161, A.H. Rodanet, Constructeur De Chronometres, Paris". White enameled single-sunken dial with black Roman numerals. Minor chips and scratch to outer portion of dial at 1 and 2 o'clock positions. Gross weight 88.7 grams. Watch is very good running order. Repeater functions tested, working and chiming properly. Case Diameter: 49mm. Case Material: 18K Pink Gold. Case Number: 213151. Case Type: Open Face. Chapter: Roman, with Arabic Outer 5 Minute Divisions and seconds, Black. Complications: Quarter-Hour Repeater. Condition: Very Good working order. Dial: White Enamel, Single Sunken. Gross Weight: 88.7 grams. Hands: Pink Gold, Spade w/blued seconds hand. Movement: Keyless, Pendant Set, No. 90894. Signed: "Patek Philippe & Co, Geneve" on dial and movement & "PPCo" inside cover. Subsidiary Dials: Constant Seconds. Condition: (Very Good). Dimensions:
Historical context
Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)
American interchangeable-parts manufacture; railroad time standards; Swiss and German factory systems.
Machine production with interchangeable parts, pioneered by Waltham (1850s) and adopted by Elgin, Longines, Omega and others, made reliable lever watches widely affordable. Keyless winding became standard, railroad watch standards were introduced (1890s), and Swiss and American industries competed globally.
Read the period in the timelineMore pocket watches from this periodEarlier: Precision & Scientific Horology
Atlas type guide
Repeating watches
Before electric light, telling the time in the dark was a real problem. Repeating watches strike the time on demand when a slide or push-piece is operated: quarter repeaters sound hours and quarters, minute repeaters hours, quarters and minutes. Edward Barlow and Daniel Quare disputed the invention in London in the 1680s. Early repeaters struck on a bell inside the case; Abraham-Louis Breguet introduced the gong (a coiled steel wire) around 1780, allowing thinner watches.
Repeaters require a separate train with racks, snails and a governor to control the striking speed, and are among the most demanding complications to make and adjust. Swiss makers of the Vallée de Joux specialised in repeating ébauches in the nineteenth century.
What to look for
- A slide on the case band or a push-piece through the pendant.
- Gongs encircling the movement (after c. 1780) or a bell in the case (earlier); pierced case for sound.
- The racks, snails and governor visible under the dial or on the movement.
- Terms such as 'Minutes', 'Quarts' or 'Répétition' on the dial or cuvette.
Dating clues
- Bell-striking quarter repeaters: c. 1690–1800.
- Gong repeaters and dumb repeaters (striking on the case): after c. 1780.
- Minute repeaters became more common after c. 1830 with Vallée de Joux ébauches.
General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.
Read next:Minute repeater
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