Important Modern and Vintage Timepieces

Hong Kong, Oct 19, 2012

LOT 229

AUDEMARS FRÈRES & CO. MINUTE REPEATER PERPETUAL CALENDAR CHRONOGRAPH PINK GOLD Audemars Frères & Co. Made in the 1890s. Very fine, hunting-cased, keyless, minute-repeating, 18K pink gold pocket watch with perpetual calendar, moon phases and chronograph.

HKD 200,000 - 300,000

USD 26,000 - 40,000 / EUR 20,000 - 30,000

Sold: HKD 237,500

C. Five-body, bassine et fi lets, solid, polished, gold hinged cuvette. D. White enamel with radial Roman numerals,outer minute ring, outermost 1/5th seconds graduation, 4 sunk subsidiary dials for the days of the month, days of the week, the months of the 4 year leap cycle, aperture for the moon phases. Gold spade hands. M. 40 mm, maillechort, 31 jewels, straight line lever escapement, cut bimetallic compensation balance, blued steel Breguet balance-spring, chronograph mechanism on the back plate, repeating on gongs by activating slide on the band. Diam. 57 mm.


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Grading System
Grade: AAA

Excellent
Case: 3-11

Good

Slightly worn
Movement: 3-7*

Good

Oxidized

Overhaul recommended, at buyer's expense
Dial: 3-01

Good

HANDS Original

Notes

What is a Minute Repeater? A minute repeating watch tells the time both visually and audibly. A slide on the side of the case, usually near the 9, will activate two hammers in the movement. These hammers strike two gongs curled within the case. First one hammer strikes a gong of lower tonality; it will count out the hours. Then both hammers will strike both gongs alternatively to count out the quarter hours after that hour, and then the second hammer alone striking a gong of higher tonality will count out the minutes after that quarter hour. The repeating mechanism was developed by Daniel Quare. In 1687, he had patented a mechanism that sounded the hours and the quarter hours. The early repeaters used bells. At the end of the 18th century, two bent-wire gongs became the more popular mechanism. In 1892, the fi rst minute repeater wristwatch was produced by Omega, a model with a roundshaped case.