Gold Minute Repeater with Russian Coat of Arms, circa 1890 — view 1 of 6 — View 1 of 6 · Image: Pieces of Time · original image source (opens another website in a new tab)

View 1 of 6 · Image: Pieces of Time · original image source (opens another website in a new tab)

Pocket Watches · Pocket watch

Gold Minute Repeater with Russian Coat of Arms, circa 1890

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.

Maker / attribution: Unrecorded in source
Date: c. 1890
Historical period: Industrial Revolution (1850 – 1900)
Country of origin: Russia
Object type: Pocket watch
Materials / technique: gold
Dealer: Pieces of Time (dealer), London
Stock no.: A11035
Credit line: Dealer listing, Pieces of Time (A11035)
Catalogue title (original): Gold Minute Repeater with Russian Coat of Arms (English)

View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction

Record summary

Catalogued by Pieces of Time (dealer), London (stock number A11035), this is a pocket watch, made in Russia, 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 6 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

Dealer description — Pieces of Time

A late 19 th Century Swiss minute repeater in a fine engine turned full hunter case bearing the coat of arms of the Russian Empire. Keyless nickelled bar movement with going barrel. Plain cock with polished steel regulator. Compensation balance with blue steel overcoil hairspring. Club foot lever escapement, escape and lever pivots with endstones. Slide minute repeating on two polished steel gongs. White enamel dial with subsidiary seconds, Roman numerals, gilt hands. Substantial engine turned 18 carat full hunter case, gold slide in the band to actuate the repeater. The front cover depicts the coat of arms of the Russian Empire in black enamel, the ribbon joining the three crowns in blue enamel. Gold cuvette signed in Cyrillic " Pavel Buhre his Majesty’s Court Supplier ". Inside the front cover a dedication which translated as " Most Merciful it was granted to the artist of the French Troupe of the St. Petersburg Emperor’s Theatre – L Gistrily 1890 "

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 timeline More pocket watches from this period Earlier: 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.

Mechanisms mentioned

Detached lever escapement — Escapement
Minute repeater — Complication
Balance spring (hairspring) — Component
Compensation balance — Component
Going barrel — Component
Jewel bearings — Component
Keyless (stem) winding — Component

Record completeness

Maker or attributionNot in source
DateRecorded
Place or countryRecorded
MaterialsRecorded
DimensionsNot in source
Narrative descriptionRecorded
Inscriptions / marksNot in source
ProvenanceNot in source
Several photographsRecorded

Editorial status: Documented — facts as published by the source; not independently verified by Atlas editors.

Explore further

Sources & image rights

Record source: Pieces of Time (dealer), London (opens another website in a new tab).

Image rights: © Pieces of Time — dealer photographs; permission required (opens another website in a new tab).

Images are hosted by the Atlas for study and credited to their owner. Rights holders may request correction, credit changes or removal, or grant permission, via the editorial office.

Cite this record

"Gold Minute Repeater with Russian Coat of Arms, circa 1890." Pieces of Time (dealer), London, A11035. Catalogue record in The Horology Atlas, WatchMuseum.org, https://atlas.watchmuseum.org/museum/gold-minute-repeater-with-russian-coat-of-arms-circa-1890-6e776a.