Chaudé pocket watch, circa 1890 — view 1 of 2
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Pocket Watches · Pocket watch

Chaudé pocket watch, circa 1890

DocumentedDocumented from an auction catalogue; attribution as stated by the auction house.
Maker / attribution
Chaudé (brand / maker)
Date
circa 1890
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Pocket watch
Materials / technique
18k yellow gold
Dimensions
51 mm. ; weight 111g
Lot
Lot 374-45
Credit line
Auction lot record: LOT 45
Catalogue title (original)
CHAUDÉ, SWITZERLAND, DOUBLE DIAL WITH TRIPLE CALENDAR WITH MOON PHASES, 18K YELLOW GOLD

View the source record (auction lot) ↗

Record summary

Catalogued by Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva (lot Lot 374-45), this is a pocket watch by Chaudé, made in Switzerland, dated circa 1890. The Atlas places it in the Industrial Revolution period (1850 – 1900) of its Pocket Watches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: 18k yellow gold. Recorded dimensions: 51 mm. ; weight 111g. The record is illustrated with 2 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

Antiquorum catalogue description

EUR 1,650 - 3,800 / CHF 1,500 - 3,500 / USD 1,750 - 4,000 A very fine and rare, 18k gold, manual wind keyless, astronomical double face pocket watch with calendar and phases of the moon.

Lot specifications (Antiquorum)

Caliber: 19’’’, maillechort, damascened with radial pattern, 17 jewels, finished calendar plate, straight line calibrated lever escapement, cut-bimetallic compensation balance with Breguet balance spring; Case No.: 8459; Signature: Dial

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

Calendar, moon-phase and perpetual calendar watches

Calendar complications range from a simple date to the perpetual calendar, which automatically allows for months of different lengths and leap years until 2100. Pocket watches with perpetual calendars were made in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; Patek Philippe made the first perpetual calendar wristwatch in 1925, and series production followed in 1941. The annual calendar (Patek Philippe, 1996) needs correction only once a year.

Moon-phase displays use a disc with two moons and 59 teeth advanced daily, approximating the 29.5-day lunation; more precise trains reduce the error to one day in over a century.

What to look for

  • Apertures or subsidiary dials for day, date, month and leap year.
  • Moon disc under a 'bosom' shaped aperture.
  • Recessed correctors on the case band for setting the calendar.

Dating clues

  • Triple-date wristwatches: popular c. 1940–1955.
  • Perpetual calendar wristwatches: from 1925 (unique) and 1941 (series).

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.

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