Gold-cased Pouzait-type lever watch with quarter-repeat and military counter
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
c. 1800
This open-faced gold pocket watch features a Pouzait-type lever escapement and a pendant-operated quarter-repeat sounding on two gongs. Configured as a military counter designed to monitor infantry marching pace at 75 paces per minute, its white enamel dial displays Arabic numerals 1 through 12 alongside an outer track numbered in five-unit steps up to 75.
The blued-steel hands are decorated with applied gold floral motifs, while the centre-mounted military counter hand is missing. The gold case features engine-turned fluting radiating from an oval cartouche engraved with the initials SK.
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
- Type
- Quarter-repeating centre-seconds pocket watch
- Beat rate
- 4,500 beats per hour (75 beats a minute)
- Escapement
- Pouzait-type lever
- Missing hand
- Centre-mounted military counter hand is missing
- Case material
- Gold
- Museum number
- 1958,1201.965
- Place recorded
- France
Design
- Visible features
- • White enamel dial with Arabic hour numerals 1 to 12 and an outer chapter ring marked from 5 to 75 • Two blued-steel hands visible with decorative applied flower motifs • Pendant with suspension bow situated at the 12 o'clock position
- Case and External Features
- The gold open-faced case measures 59.0 mm in diameter and features engine-turned fluting radiating from an oval cartouche engraved with the initials 'SK'. The case band is reeded, and the internal dome includes a direction arrow for hand-setting. The dial is pinned directly to the movement front plate, as no separate dial-plate was intended in the construction. The blued-steel hands each feature an applied gold flower.
- Military Counter Configuration
- This timepiece is described as a 'Compteur Militaire', designed for controlling the marching pace of infantry. The white enamel dial is calibrated with an outer track numbered in five-unit increments up to 75, corresponding to the 'cadence normale' of 75 paces per minute. The watch is currently noted as incomplete, with the centre-mounted military counter hand missing. A stop mechanism was originally integrated, indicated by an 'A' and 'M' (Arrêt and Marche) inscription on the edge of the front plate. The source notes that all components of this stop mechanism are missing.
- Movement and Escapement Construction
- The movement uses a Pouzait-type lever escapement with a steel pin wheel, where the inserted pins measure 0.11 mm in diameter. The escapement is noted as having crudely made components, including steel pallets with one broken horn. The movement is full-plate and contains no jewels, relying instead on polished steel coquerets for the pallet and balance pivots. The quarter-repeat mechanism is pendant-operated and sounds on two blued-steel gongs. It utilizes a chain to link the plunger-operated lever to the repeating barrel arbor.
Identification
- Reference
- 1958,1201.965
- Serial number
- 6150
- 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: Maker is unknown with no signature present on the watch.
- Research required: Country of manufacture is tentatively attributed to France or possibly Switzerland.
- Research required: The centre-seconds military counter hand and components of the stop mechanism are noted as missing.