Bovet & Fleurier Chinese Market Duplex pocket watch
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
circa 1850
According to the seller, this key-wound and key-set pocket watch was produced for the Chinese market circa 1850 with a movement signed Bovet & Fleurier. The source states the movement features a gilt bridge design with carved polished decoration, enamel highlights, a crab tooth duplex escapement, a freestanding mainspring barrel, and a steel balance wheel with blued steel bat-wing weights.
It is housed in a large silver-gilt case measuring 60 mm wide and 20 mm deep bearing London hallmarks for 1936. The white enamel dial is fitted with blued steel spoon hands and a central seconds hand.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Technical characteristics
- Date
- circa 1850
- Type
- Duplex pocket watch
- Dimensions
- 60mm wide x 20mm deep
- Escapement
- Crab tooth duplex escapement
- Case Hallmarks
- London 1936
- Place recorded
- Switzerland
- Dial description
- White enamel dial with blue steel spoon hands
- Maker attribution
- Bovet & Fleurier
- Maker / attribution
- Bovet & Fleurier
Design
- Visible features
- • White enamel dial with slender Roman numeral hour markers and an outer minute track marked with Arabic numerals at 15, 30, 45, and 60. • Blued steel hands with spoon-shaped terminals and a thin central seconds hand. • Pendant and bow in gilt metal bearing visible small stamped maker or hallmark punches on the neck and ring.
- Dial and Front Presentation
- The watch presents a white enamel dial with slender Roman numeral hour markers, an outer minute ring punctuated with Arabic numerals at 15, 30, 45, and 60, and a mineral glass cover. Time is indicated by a pair of blued steel hands with spoon-shaped terminals and a blued steel central seconds hand. Visible from the front, the pendant and bow are rendered in gilt metal and show small stamped punches on the neck and ring. The exterior case bezel exhibits a smooth, plain polished finish.
- Reported Movement Characteristics
- Because only the front dial face is depicted in the supplied photography, details regarding the movement rely on the seller's documentation. The mechanism is reported to be signed "Bovet & Fleurier" and dated circa 1850. The caliber is described as a gilt bridge movement featuring a crab tooth duplex escapement, a freestanding mainspring barrel, and a steel balance wheel fitted with large blued steel bat-wing weights. The surfaces are stated to feature carved polished decoration against a brushed gilt ground with enamel accents. The watch is key-wound and key-set, accompanied by a key.
- Case Form and Hallmarking Discrepancy
- The movement is housed in a large silver-gilt case measuring 60 mm in width by 20 mm in depth. According to the seller, the case construction includes a fixed front bezel, a hinged outer back, and a hinged inner bezel that is missing its glass cover. The seller highlights a chronological tension between the circa 1850 movement and the case, which carries London hallmarks for 1936. Noting that Chinese market watch cases typically carry no hallmarks, the dealer hypothesizes that the watch was either recased in a later purpose-made housing or that the existing case received hallmarks in London in 1936.
Identification
- Source note
- Facts transcribed from the linked source listing or collection record. Attribution and specifications are source-reported and have not been independently authenticated.
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: Dealer notes a discrepancy between the circa 1850 movement date and the 1936 London case hallmarks, suggesting recasing or late hallmarking.
- Research required: The movement and inside case back are not visible in the front dial photograph; internal descriptions rely on source claims.