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Watch: M/P.81 & A & B-1913

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Object information

Current Location: In storage

Maker(s)

Maker: Gregson

Entities

Categories

Description

Verge watch in gold enamelled case, set with pearls.

MOVEMENT: Full plate movement engraved 'Gregson a Paris', also painted on dial. Balance bridge having pierced and engraved table, and polished steel coquette. Brass balance. Silver regulation dial engraved 'A' and 'R' at end of scale. Plain cock for top pivot of fusee. Plain plate engraved as above. Fusee iron post turned. Case bolt sliding in plate with conical end, nib under dial. Adjustable potance. Counter potance screwed on underside of top plate with polished steel end plate and adjustable screw. Pillar plate with four plain turned pillars. Sunk centre wheel. Third wheel bar. Small raised wall, about 1 mm high, around movement, cut away for joint, case bolt, barrel and dial pillars. Flat surface under dial. Fusee and chain, set-up click under dial, barrel with with one lip. Verge escapement. Train planted anti-clockwise.

DIAL: White enamel on copper with gilt edge, counter enamel inscribed '23' and 'R'. Vertical Arabic quarter figures, circle and lines minute ring. Vertical Roman chapters, name painted as above in arc from 7 to 5 o'clock. Winding hole at about 1.50.

HANDS: Gold beetle and poker.

INNER CASE: Gold, ring of pearls set around bezel an body, band of bezel chased with rope pattern. Back enamelled with dark blue translucent enamel over pattern of turned circles, centre with polychrome painting of Electra and a cherub on a cloud, outside edge with pattern of gold line intertwined with dotted gold line and light blue leaves. Outside circle of chipped holes that once contained diamonds. Inside of case scratched with '2865' and '2950' and case opening scratched '305'. Pendant regular base stamped '157', oval stem, rectangular top stamped 'JM' on top. Wide bow.

OUTER CASE (A): Thin gilt metal band with glass back, open bezel.

STORAGE BOX (B): Red leather covered formed box with gilt tooling edge to lid, hinged at top. Small rectangular label in base with 'cc\-\-/328' (second 'c' reversed) written on. Inside, the lid is covered in silk, and the base is covered with chamois leather. There is a recess for chatelaine in the middle, with round recess for watch to right and recess the same size to the left. The second recess is with a round paper label with 'Made by/ Pierre Gregson/ who was Watch-/-maker to Louis XVI' ('XVI' between lines), written in ink

Legal notes

Bequeathed by Frank Gray Smart

Place(s) associated

  • Paris ⪼ France

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1913-06-05) by Smart, Frank Gray

Dating

18th Century
Production date: circa AD 1780

Components of the work

Fusee Post composed of iron
Storage Box composed of silk leather Length 313 mm Thickness 30 mm Width 182 mm
Dial, Outer Case composed of gilt
Inner Case composed of pearls Diameter 47.25 mm Height 59.5 mm Thickness 17.5 mm
Dial, Inner Case composed of enamel
Hands, Inner Case composed of gold
Movement composed of silver steel brass (alloy)
Outer Case composed of glass Diameter 53 mm Height 62.5 mm Thickness 21.25 mm
Movement (top Plate) Diameter 39 mm
Movement (pillar Plate) Diameter 41.5 mm
Movement (pillar) Height 2.75 mm
Movement, Inner Case

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: 'Gregson a Paris'
  • Location: Movement
  • Method of creation: Engraved
  • Type: Maker's name
  • Text: '2865', '2950', '305', '157'
  • Location: Inner case
  • Method of creation: Scratched, (last) stamped
  • Type: Number
  • Text: 'JM'
  • Location: Inner case
  • Method of creation: Stamped
  • Type: Initials

Inscription present: 'XVI' between lines

  • Text: 'Made by/ Pierre Gregson/ who was Watch-/-maker to Louis XVI'
  • Location: Storage box
  • Method of creation: Inscribed in ink
  • Type: Label

Inscription present: rectangular label

  • Text: 'cc\-\-/328' (second 'c' reversed)
  • Location: Storage box
  • Method of creation: Inscribed
  • Type: Label

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: M/P.81 & A & B-1913
Primary reference Number: 207248
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Tuesday 8 December 2015 Updated: Tuesday 18 December 2018 Last processed: Friday 8 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Watch" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/207248 Accessed: 2024-11-02 21:30:08

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/207248 |title=Watch |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-02 21:30:08|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-207248

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    <figure class="figure">
        <img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/aa/aa37/M_P_81_20_26_20A_20_26_20B_1913_1_201306_amt49_dc2.jpg"
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        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Watch</figcaption>
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