Pierre-Simon Gounouilhou (1779-1847).
Was born in Bergerac en Dordogne, France, in 1779, and died in 1847 in Peissy, Satigny. A Master watchmaker, he was from a French Protestant family and came to Geneva as an apprentice in 1799, living at Quai Neuf en l?Isle, No. 241, and being received "bourgeois" in 1823. He began his career as a maker of automaton and musical objects and watches, including one representing a kitchen with Jaquemarts, ring watches with virgule escapement and quarter-repeating, and watches with cases using unusual decorative techniques such as granulation. Later, he produced more conventional repeating watches of slim design. The examples made shortly after his arrival in Geneva can be compared to the early work of Jacob Frisard and Isaac-Daniel Piguet (before the latter went into partnership with Meylan). He left very interesting shop notes with an abundance of information about the habits and customs of early 19th century Geneva watchmakers. His repute was so great that his shop lured some of the best of Geneva?s workers. One of them, Monsieur Pitt, was in turn induced in 1829 by Vacheron Constantin to upgrade their automaton watches and left Gounouilhou for them. His company name continued to be used after his death until 1870. See: ?Dictionnaire des horlogers genevois?, Osvaldo Patrizzi, Antiquorum Editions, Geneva, 1998. C. Tall, octagonal, the front and back central panel decorated with a finely painted on enamel oval portraits of young ladies with flowers in their hair and in landscapes, one seated on a chair, the other clasping an urn, red guilloché enamel borders decorated with flower swags, the corners with light-blue champlevé enamel and engraved gold foliage, the sides overlaid with royal blue enamel over black diamond pattern engine-turning, the hinged lid decorated with royal blue, light-blue and white champlevé enamel, the interior with apertures for winding, hand-setting and regulation, the top glazed to view the watch, thumb-piece set with a large rose-cut diamond, gold suspension chain. D. Small white enamel, Arabic numerals, outer minute divisions, royal blue translucent enamel border with engraved flowers, aperture for the visible rose-cut diamond-set balance with white enamel leaf border. Blued steel "pear" hands. M. 23 x 14 mm., octagonal brass plates, fixed going barrel, cylinder escapement, five-spoke rose-cut diamond-set gold balance, flat balance spring, regulation via an arbour. Dim. 77 x 32 x 26 mm. Pierre-Simon Gounouilhou (1779-1847). Was born in Bergerac en Dordogne, France, in 1779, and died in 1847 in Peissy, Satigny. A Master watchmaker, he was from a French Protestant family and came to Geneva as an apprentice in 1799, living at Quai Neuf en l?Isle, No. 241, and being received "bourgeois" in 1823. He began his career as a maker of automaton and musical objects and watches, including one representing a kitchen with Jaquemarts, ring watches with virgule escapement and quarter-repeating, and watches with cases using unusual decorative techniques such as granulation. Later, he produced more conventional repeating watches of slim design. The examples made shortly after his arrival in Geneva can be compared to the early work of Jacob Frisard and Isaac-Daniel Piguet (before the latter went into partnership with Meylan). He left very interesting shop notes with an abundance of information about the habits and customs of early 19th century Geneva watchmakers. His repute was so great that his shop lured some of the best of Geneva?s workers. One of them, Monsieur Pitt, was in turn induced in 1829 by Vacheron Constantin to upgrade their automaton watches and left Gounouilhou for them. His company name continued to be used after his death until 1870. See: ?Dictionnaire des horlogers genevois?, Osvaldo Patrizzi, Antiquorum Editions, Geneva, 1998.