Live Auction 1413Rare Watches Including Important Private Collections
Imhof. A fine and very rare 18K gold, openface two-train grande sonnerie striking, openface keywound clockwatch with quarter repeating jaquemart automaton on two visible bells
Lot 70

Imhof. A fine and very rare 18K gold, openface two-train grande sonnerie striking, openface keywound clockwatch with quarter repeating jaquemart automaton on two visible bells

Signed Imhof à London (Swiss), circa 1810

Closed16 May 2016

Price Realised

CHF 22,500

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Imhof. A fine and very rare 18K gold, openface two-train grande sonnerie striking, openface keywound clockwatch with quarter repeating jaquemart automaton on two visible bells
Signed Imhof à London (Swiss), circa 1810
Gilt-finished full plate movement, engraved fixed barrels for both the going and striking trains, cylinder escapement, foliate pierced cock with initials “CJ”, polished steel strikework on the backplate, striking and repeating with two hammers on two bells via the automaton jacks on the front, repeating train with further barrel, engine-turned hinged dust cover, strike/silent lever on the dial plate edge, small eccentric white enamel dial, Roman numerals, gold pierced hands, translucent dark blue enamel ground with gold pailloné border, applied varicoloured gold jacks of a shepherd and lady striking the polished bells, polished circular case, repeating through the pendant, cuvette, dial and movement signed
57 mm. diam.

Specialist note

This extremely unusual and sophisticated version of a jaquemart automaton watch is a grande sonnerie striking clockwatch, quite a rarity at this period. Furthermore the particularly rare feature is that the automaton gold jacks actually do in reality strike the bells mounted on the front of the watch. This is almost unheard of, in nearly all other jaquemart watches the striking or repeating takes place on gongs on the inside of the movement, the figures only giving the outward appearance that they are striking. The independent striking train is elegantly set on the back plate, an integral system with a single train for both striking and repeating was not invented until 1859 by Henri Golay.