Important Collectors’ Wristwatches, P...

Geneva, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Du Rhône, Oct 15, 2006

LOT 382

"Astrolabium Galileo Galilei" Ulysse Nardin, Locle, Suisse, "Astrolabium Galileo Galilei", No. 230, Ref. 951-22. Made in August 1988. Very fine and unusual, astronomic, self-winding, water-resistant, 18K yellow gold gentleman's wristwatch with astrolabe, days and months, and an 18K yellow gold Ulysse Nardin buckle.

CHF 14,000 - 18,000

EUR 9,000 - 11,000 / USD 11,000 - 15,000

Sold: CHF 35,400

C. Three-body, solid, polished, solid case back with four screws, rounded bezel graduated with engraved alternating Roman and Arabic numerals for the 24 hours, fluted claw lugs. D. Gray and silver, off-center gold disk with division for the 12 signs of the Zodiac, overlapping rings representing the following: equinoctial time, local time, the months, signs of the zodiac, the elevation and azimuth of the sun and the moon on the planisphere, the diurnal and nocturnal hours, the moon phases, the aspect of the sun and the moon in relation to each other. Blued steel "baton" hands. M. Cal. UN-97, hand engraved, gilt, 33 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, monometallic balance, shock absorber, self-compensating flat balance spring. Case and movement signed. Diam. 40 mm. Thickness 13 mm.


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Grading System
Grade: AAA

Excellent
Case: 3

Good
Movement: 2

Very good
Dial: 2-01

Very good

HANDS Original

Notes

Astrolabium Galileo Galilei This wristwatch was the first of the Trilogy series, which was introduced in 1985. Named after Galileo Galilei, it is a tribute to his astronomical discoveries. This timepiece was the first in the world to have all of the following complications: time of day; perpetual calendar; moon phases; moonrise and moonset; sunrise and sunset; dawn and dusk; signs of the zodiac; and Solar and Lunar eclipses. The most complicated function is the ability of the watch to indicate the positions of sun, moon and stars, as seen from the Earth. Also shown on the dial is the Tropic of Capricorn. All of the numerous features of the watch are controlled through the single winding crown. Due to its complexity, as it was based on the astrolabe, it was featured on the cover of the Guiness Book of World Records and was cited in the book. Galileo Galilei (1564 -1642) Galilei used the telescope to discover that the planets had moons, the Moon had craters and the Sun had spots. He championed the idea that the planets moved around the Sun and supported this theory with his use of the telescope. His observations of the movements of the moons and the planets changed the notions of the heavens and influenced the future of astronomy. Galileo Galilei is also attributed with discovering the principle of isochronism in the early 1600s. Galileo claimed that for pendulums of equal lengths, the oscillation time is constant and isochronous, regardless of the amplitude. Galilei applied this theory to a clock, that was extremely precise.