Pocket Watches · Watch
Watch by Pierre II Huaud, England, 1675–1730
- Maker / attribution
- Pierre II Huaud (Miniaturiste); John Gerard (Horloger)
- Date
- 1675–1700 (case and dial); 1730 (movement)
- Historical period
- Early Modern Horology (1600 – 1750)
- Country of origin
- England
- Place
- Londres, England
- Object type
- Watch
- Materials / technique
- gold
- Dimensions
- height 5,2 cm; diameter 3,7 cm; thickness 2 cm
- Holding institution
- Musée du Louvre, Paris
- Accession / object no.
- OA 8325
- Credit line
- Musée du Louvre, Département des Objets d'art du Moyen Age, de la Renaissance et des temps modernes
- Catalogue title (original)
- Montre ronde (French)
View the source record ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction
Record summary
Held and catalogued by Musée du Louvre, Paris (object number OA 8325), this is a watch by Pierre II Huaud, made in Londres, England, dated 1675–1700 (case and dial); 1730 (movement). The Atlas places it in the Early Modern Horology period (1600 – 1750) of its Pocket Watches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: gold. Recorded dimensions: height 5,2 cm; diameter 3,7 cm; thickness 2 cm. 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
Catalogue description — Musée du Louvre (French)
Fond du boîtier orné d'une peinture émaillée représentant Vénus et Adonis : celui-ci armé d'une lance, suivi de ses chiens, soulève une tenture où apparait la déesse nue, à demi-allongée, l'Amour s'agrippant à la jambe du chasseur. Contre-émail orné d'un paysage où se dresse une tour au bord d'une rivière. Carrure décorée de quatre médaillons, séparés par des fleurs, contenant des paysages aux édifices variés au bord de l'eau. Lunette du verre gravée, charnière striée sous le pendant. Cadran à chiffres romains, orné au centre d'un médaillon peint figurant Vénus et Adonis ; aiguille manquante. Mouvement muni d'un échappement à roue de rencontre, une fusée avec chaînette. Balancier doté d'un ressort-spiral ; rosette de réglage en argent ; coq à un pied gravé et reperé de rinceaux où apparaissent deux têtes de chien.
Shown in the original language of the source catalogue. An editor-reviewed English translation has not yet been published; we do not publish machine translations as authoritative text.
Dating and period as catalogued (French)
Epoque / période : Louis XIV (1643-1715) (Occident->époque moderne = Ancien Régime->dynastie des Bourbons) ; Louis XV (1715-1774) (Occident->époque moderne = Ancien Régime->dynastie des Bourbons) · · Date de création/fabrication : 1675 - 1700 (boîtier et cadran) et vers 1730 (mouvement)
Shown in the original language of the source catalogue. An editor-reviewed English translation has not yet been published; we do not publish machine translations as authoritative text.
Materials and techniques as catalogued (French)
Matériau : or · Technique : techniques métal (orfèvrerie) · Technique : émaillé = émaillage = émail = émaux (techniques métal)
Shown in the original language of the source catalogue. An editor-reviewed English translation has not yet been published; we do not publish machine translations as authoritative text.
Inscriptions & marks
Signature : ; mouvement signé : Jn°. Gerard 598 / LONDON ; boîtier signé en bas de la scène émaillée : P. huaud / laisné
Provenance
collection Jules-René Olivier (1855-1933), horloger-collectionneur ; exposition au musée Galliera en 1921, n° 249 ; legs de Marie-Julie Olivier, n° 684 ; comité du 24 janvier 1935 ; conseil du 5 février 1935 ; décret du 4 août 1935
Historical context
Early Modern Horology (1600 – 1750)
Huygens' pendulum and balance spring transform accuracy; English makers develop the anchor and deadbeat escapements.
The balance spring (c. 1675) improved watches dramatically and introduced the minute hand. English pair-cased verge watches with pierced balance cocks and French oignons were typical; enamel painting at Blois and Geneva, and the repeating watch (1680s), made watches objects of great refinement.
Read the period in the timelineMore pocket watches from this periodEarlier: Renaissance Horology
Atlas type guide
Pocket watches
The pocket watch was the dominant personal timekeeper from the late seventeenth century until the First World War. Its development tracks the history of the escapement: verge watches with fusees until the late eighteenth century; Thomas Mudge's lever escapement (c. 1755) and the cylinder escapement popularised by George Graham and later by Swiss makers; and the Swiss and English lever watches of the nineteenth century. Lépine's bar-bridge calibre and keyless winding made watches thinner and easier to use.
Industrialisation transformed the trade: American factories such as Waltham (from 1850) and Elgin produced interchangeable parts by machine, and Swiss makers responded with their own mechanisation after the 1876 Philadelphia Exhibition. By 1900 a reliable watch was affordable to millions; the finest makers continued to produce complications and precision watches.
What to look for
- The escapement: verge (crown wheel), cylinder, duplex, English or Swiss lever.
- Key winding (a square arbor in dial or back) or keyless crown winding.
- Signatures and serial numbers on the movement, dial and inside case back.
- Hallmarks, case maker's marks and gold or silver standards stamped in the case.
- Dial material: enamel, silver, gold, later printed metal.
Dating clues
- Verge watches dominate before c. 1800; cylinder watches c. 1770–1900; lever watches after c. 1820.
- Keyless winding: increasingly common after c. 1860.
- Manufacturer serial number lists exist for Waltham, Elgin, Longines, Omega, Patek Philippe and others.
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:Verge escapementDetached lever escapementIdentification Centre
Related records
Pocket Watches · 17th century
Watch by John Bushman, England, 17th century
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Pocket Watches · c. 1610-1620
Case and dial of engraved silver and gilt brass. English, about 1640.
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Pocket Watches · c. 1610
Watch by N. Ridgdale, England, c. 1610
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Pocket Watches · c. 1620–25
Watch by Isaac Symms, England, c. 1620–25
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Pocket Watches · 1622–1628
Pocket watch by James Vautrollier, England, 1622–1628
Science Museum Group, London
Pocket Watches · 1625
Pocket watch by David Ramsay, England, 1625
Science Museum Group, London
Pocket Watches · c. 1635
Jewellery, England
Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Pocket Watches · 1630
Pocket watch by G Petit, England, 1630
Science Museum Group, London