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Pearl Set Gold and Enamel Pendant Watch, 1820 — view 1 of 4
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Pocket Watches · Pocket watch

Pearl Set Gold and Enamel Pendant Watch, 1820

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Unrecorded in source
Date
1820
Country of origin
Unrecorded in source
Object type
Pocket watch
Materials / technique
gold, enamel, pearl
Stock no.
Product 1458
Credit line
Dealer listing, WatchMuseum.org shop (product 1458)
Catalogue title (original)
Pearl Set Gold and Enamel Pendant Watch (English)

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

Record summary

Catalogued by WatchMuseum.org shop (stock number Product 1458), this is a pocket watch, dated 1820. The Atlas places it in the Precision & Scientific Horology period (1750 – 1850) of its Pocket Watches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: gold, enamel, pearl. 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

Dealer description — WatchMuseum.org shop

Step into the elegance of the early 19th century with the exquisite Pearl Set Gold and Enamel Pendant Watch, a masterful creation from circa 1820 that epitomizes Swiss craftsmanship. This remarkable timepiece is housed in a captivating full hunter case adorned with pearls and intricate enamel work, making it a true collector’s item. The watch features a full plate gilt fusee movement, complete with a finely pierced and engraved bridge cock, showcasing the meticulous attention to detail that defines this era. The plain three-arm gilt balance, paired with a blue steel spiral hairspring, adds a touch of sophistication to its mechanical beauty. The silver regulator dial, accented by a blue steel indicator, complements the white enamel dial which is elegantly marked with Arabic numerals and gold Breguet hands. The gold case, measuring 34mm in diameter, is the pièce de résistance, with bezels set in two rows of split pearls and engine-turned centers bordered by light blue champlevé enamel, enhancing the watch’s timeless charm. A button in the pendant allows the front cover to open, revealing the intricate workings within, making this watch not just a timekeeper but a piece of art that has withstood the test of time. This is a delightful early 19th Century Swiss verge watch, presented in a stunning pearl set gold and enamel full hunter case. The watch features a full plate gilt fusee movement with a finely pierced and engraved bridge cock. The plain three arm gilt balance comes with blue steel spiral hairspring that is quite elegant. The silver regulator dial boasts of a blue steel indicator, and the white enamel dial has Arabic numerals and gold Breguet hands. The gold full hunter case is the highlight, with its bezels set with two rows of exquisite split pearls. The engine turned centres of both covers are bordered by light blue champleve enamel that adds to the watch’s charm. This watch’s front cover can be opened by depressing a button in the pendant. Estimated to have been manufactured around 1820, the watch measures 34mm in diameter. Circa 1820 Diameter 34 mm Materials Enamel Gold

Historical context

Precision & Scientific Horology (1750 – 1850)

Harrison solves longitude; Mudge invents the lever; Breguet's Paris workshop defines the modern watch.

From 1750 to 1850 the watch became a precision instrument. Mudge's lever escapement, the cylinder escapement, Lépine's thin bar calibre, Breguet's innovations (overcoil, tourbillon, perpétuelle) and the pocket chronometer of Arnold and Earnshaw all date from this period, while verge watches remained common in cheaper production.

Read the period in the timelineMore pocket watches from this periodEarlier: Early Modern Horology

Atlas type guide

Early spring-driven watches

Portable spring-driven timepieces appeared in southern Germany, France and Italy in the early sixteenth century; Peter Henlein of Nuremberg is traditionally credited, although the historical record is complex. These early watches were worn as pendants or carried, had iron or brass movements with a verge escapement and a foliot or small balance, and used a stackfreed or fusee to equalise spring force. They indicated hours only and were notoriously inaccurate.

From the later sixteenth century watches were made in Blois, Paris, Geneva, London and Augsburg in oval, octagonal, cruciform, skull and other 'form' cases of rock crystal, gilt brass, silver and enamel. They were jewellery and status objects as much as timekeepers.

What to look for

  • A single hour hand and often a touch-pin hour ring for feeling the time.
  • Stackfreed (a cam and spring) instead of a fusee on German watches.
  • Pierced and engraved cocks over the balance, fine gut fusee lines.
  • Rock-crystal, enamelled or engraved form cases.

Dating clues

  • Drum-shaped German watches: c. 1530–1580.
  • Oval and form watches: c. 1580–1650.
  • Before c. 1675 there is no balance spring; watches can vary by many minutes a day.

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:FoliotThe Melanchthon watch

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