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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Pocket watch · Jacquemart automaton quarter repeater pocket watch

Historic 18 Karat Tricolor Gold Open Face Jacquemart Automaton Quarter Repeater Pocket Watch

Partially verified

This open-face quarter repeater pocket watch measures 50.00 mm in diameter and is housed in an 18 karat gold case. It features a central white enamel dial marked with black Arabic numerals and a minute track, surrounded by ornate tricolor gold Jacquemart automaton figures representing Orpheus and Eurydice striking bells. Below them sits a representation of the altar of Cupid flanked by doves. The movement employs a fusee with chain and a verge escapement, with repeating functionality actuated by pressing the crown and stem. The watch is presented in a fitted tooled leather case alongside a figural winding key.

Front view of the open-face automaton pocket watch displayed inside its fitted leather case beside the engraved silver medallion and figural winding key
Front view of the open-face automaton pocket watch displayed inside its fitted leather case beside the engraved silver medallion and figural winding key — Freeman's. Rights pending — permission not yet requested. Original source

Catalogue identity

Source
hindmanauctions.com
Category
Pocket watch · Jacquemart automaton quarter repeater pocket watch
Maker / attribution
IK or JK
Reference
Not recorded
Catalogue / lot identifier
76
Source-reported date
Bearing Date Mark for 1805
Country
Austria
Source-reported serial
1258

Source-reported attribution and specifications are not independent authentication. A listing does not establish present ownership, current display, availability or permission to reproduce.

Object description

Dial and Automaton Configuration

The timepiece features a central white enamel dial with black Arabic numerals and an outer chapter ring calibrated to 60 minutes. The dial includes a gold outer border.

The watch is decorated with tricolor gold Jacquemart automaton figures depicting Orpheus and Eurydice. These figures are positioned to strike bells above an altar of Cupid with doves and a flower basket.

Evidence for this section
  • “white enamel dial, black Arabic numerals with outer chapter ring calibrated to 60 minutes, gold outer border”
  • “accented with tricolor gold Jacquemart automatons striking bells depicting Orpheus and Eurydice above the altar of Cupid with doves and a flower basket”

Construction and Internal Mechanism

The watch is housed in an 18 karat gold case measuring 50.00 mm in diameter. The back cover is a guilloche design featuring a cartouche engraved with the initials 'M de'.

The internal mechanism consists of a fusee with chain and a verge escapement. The quarter-repeating function is activated by depressing the crown and stem. The watch includes a gilt brass cuvette with a decorative figural hinge and an inner case back stamped with the sequence: A_(obcured)1258 K18 II.

Evidence for this section
  • “50.00 mm case diameter”
  • “18 karat gold guilloche back cover with cartouche engraved “M de””
  • “gilt brass cuvette with decorative figural hinge, fusee with chain, verge escapement.”
  • “Inner case back stamp: A_(obcured)1258 K18 II.”

Provenance and Documentation

The auction record states the watch is purportedly owned by the Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834) by repute. It was included in a 2007 exhibition at Lafayette College titled 'A Son and his Adoptive Father', the Marquis de Lafayette and George Washington.

The watch is accompanied by a silver plaque engraved with an inscription referencing the Marquis and the date 1805, alongside a figural winding key shaped like General Lafayette.

Evidence for this section
  • “Purportedly Owned by Marquis de Lafayette”
  • “Provenance: By repute, from the collection of the Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834)”
  • “Exhibited at Lafayette College in 2007”
  • “Commemorative silver plaque is dated 1805”
  • “Accompanied by a yellow gold watching winding key in the figure of General Lafayette.”

Open research questions

  • What is the significance of the secondary reference found on the silver plaque: '2d boitier: Page Saluant (Au No. 207 I.R. Schavije)'?
  • Can the maker 'IK' or 'JK' be verified against records of Austrian goldsmiths operating circa 1805?

Source evidence

Recorded claims and source quotations for Historic 18 Karat Tricolor Gold Open Face Jacquemart Automaton Quarter Repeater Pocket Watch
FieldSource-reported valueSource quotation
Case Diameter50.00 mm“50.00 mm case diameter”
EscapementVerge escapement“fusee with chain, verge escapement.”
Inner Case StampA_(obcured)1258 K18 II“Inner case back stamp: A_(obcured)1258 K18 II.”
EngravingMq de La Fayette“plate between the gongs engraved, "Mq de La Fayette"”
MakerIK or JK“Maker "IK" or "JK"”
Internal EngravingMq de La Fayette“plate between the gongs engraved, "Mq de La Fayette"”

Visible details

  • Central white enamel time dial with winding aperture positioned near the two o'clock index.
  • Tricolor gold automaton figures of Orpheus and Eurydice flanking the dial beside top bells.
  • Accompanied by a fitted brown leather presentation box containing an engraved circular silver plaque and a figural yellow gold winding key.

Research qualifications

  • Ownership by the Marquis de Lafayette is noted by the auction house as reputed and purported rather than definitively verified.
  • Internal movement, cuvette, and case back are not visible in the provided image.
  • Case back stamp contains an obscured letter.

Photograph identity and source facts were screened before import; rights clearance remains pending.

Consulted source

A Historic 18 Karat Tricolor Gold Open Face Jacquemart... | Freeman's

Reviewed 2026-10-22 · Record ba79477099

Terms in this record

Glossary explanations for terms named in this object’s record.