A9330

Rare Swiss Sun and Moon Verge

£6,750.00

Signed  Swiss
Circa   1800
A very rare late 18th Century Swiss verge with sun and moon dial in a silver open face case.
Diameter   53 mm       Depth   6.5 mm

Out of stock

Description

A very rare late 18th Century Swiss verge with sun and moon dial in a silver open face case.  Unusual slim full plate gilt fusee movement.  The barrel and fusee under a profusely engraved plate standing higher than the rest of the train.  Pierced and engraved bridge cock, broad engraved feet, steel coqueret.  Plain three arm gilt balance with blue steel spiral hairspring. Rare polychrome enamel dial depicting a church with its clock tower, Arabic numerals in a semi-circle above.  The hours are indicated by a polychrome enamel disc which rotates once every 24 hours.  This is viewed through the large aperture and has on one half the sun in a clear blue sky and on the other the moon among clouds.  At the edge of the semi-circle the hours are marked from six through twelve and back to six in Arabic numerals.  As the sun disappears at the right of the aperture the moon appears at the left. At the centre a small white square forms the face of the church clock marked at the quarters in Roman numerals, the miniature hand rotating once an hour.  Plain silver open face case with ribbed middle.

A very rare late example of a sun and moon watch using a novel way of indicating the minutes.  The plain silver back is probably a replacement, the original would have had a shutter to allow the watch to be wound from the back