Important English duplex pin lever for the Chinese market Circa 1800

Gold, enamel and half pearl set pocket watch by William Anthony
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An important English 18 carat gold, enamel and half pearl set open faced half seconds jumping centre seconds duplex pocket watch seven days power reserve made for the Chinese market, circa 1800. Gilt elaborately florally engraved bridge movement, duplex pin lever escapement, key wind, large going barrel, five arm steel balance. White enamel dial with Roman hours, outer minute divisions and Arabic quarter hours. On the case back a polychrome enamel scene showing Hector’s farewell to his wife Andromache and their son Astyanax framed by a fine border of gold and white enamel on a cobalt blue engine turned ground, the motif is taken from the sixth book of Homer’s Iliad, while the scene is painted after an etching by Luigi Schiavonetti dating from 1790, which was inspired by a painting by Angelika Kauffmann, the pendant, stem, bow and both bezels are also decorated with half-pearls.
Cuvette signed, case numbered.
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Diameter: 64 mm
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Weight: 179 g
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Signed: William Anthony London
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Luigi Schiavonetti was an Italian reproductive engraver and etcher. He was born on April 1^st, 1765 at Bassano in Venetia and he died on June 7^th, 1810.
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Even though the enamel painting is not signed, it is fairly obviously Lissignol’s work. The extremely fine strokes of the brush, made by a single hair, in combination with the pointillistic technique, are typical for his work. 
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Jean Abraham Lissignol was a Swiss painter, revolutionary and one of the finest enamellers of his time. He was born in Geneva on May 7th, 1749 and died in Plainpalais on June 28th, 1819. He was the pupil of Jean-Marc Roux and later became his partner. Specialized in snuff boxes and watch cases, he worked for Jaquet-Droz & Leschot, the Rochat Brothers and John Rich.
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Angelika Kauffmann or Maria Anna Angelica Kauffmann was born on 30 October 1741 in Chur, Switzerland and died on 5 November 1807 in Rome, Italy. She originally was a Swiss or Austrian painter who also worked in England and Italy.
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William Anthony (1765-1844) had his workshop in Red Lion Street, St. John’s Square in Clerkenwell, where he produced high-quality ornamental watches for the Chinese market. He created distinctive pieces with oval dials and expanding hands that adjusted automatically to the changing radius of the oval dial. Anthony was a successful businessman and played an important role in the foundation of the Watch- and Clockmakers’ Benevolent Association in 1815. After a failed lawsuit and an unsuccessful attempt at an exhibition, however, he suffered some heavy losses. William Anthony died a poor man in 1844 because he had forgotten to collect the rents from the tenants in his properties for years.
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Watches by William Anthony very rarely appear on the market. From a study of the public collections and the auction market over the last 50 years one learned that only 17 oval watches (from which 6 with expanding hands) and 15 round watches are known to exist.