Swiss cylinder watch made for the Chinese market Circa 1820

Gold and enamel centre seconds cylinder watch
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A very important Swiss 18 carat rose gold, enamel and half pearl-set open faced centre seconds cylinder pocket watch made for the Chinese market, circa 1820. A heart plays false. Bridge movement, cylinder escapement, three-arm ring balance.
White enamel dial with Roman hours and outer minute divisions, Arabic 60, 45, 30 and 15. The case back with a very fine executed polychrome enamel medallion showing a baroque genre scene in a taverna depicting two men in a game of cards and a lady holding a mirror behind the back of the older man helping the younger man to win his game, in the style of the Flemish painter Théodore Rombouts (1597-1637), band, pendant and bow with champlevé enamel ornamentation, bezels, pendant and bow set with half pearls.
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Diameter: 61 mm
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Weight: 137 g.
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Signed: J.D. Piguet & S. Meylan à Genève
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This piece is a perfect example from the heyday of enamel painting in Geneva during the first half of the 19th century an unrivalled quality that had never been reached before and likewise, was never achieved again in later days. Enamel painting is the ultimate in enamelling works such as cloisonné and champlevé. The miniature painting of this genre scene is of a resplendent perfect beauty that is further enhanced by the dazzling and finely hued array of colours. The individual colours were applied in layers and burned at 800-900 degrees of heat a skill that required extreme craftsmanship, patience and expertise. The process itself comprised 20 or more layers and burning sequences, where each sequence posed a danger to the work carried out previously. Finally, a transparent layer of enamel was applied to protect the painting and intensify the colours, this was known as the Fondant de Genève. The whole process demanded utmost care and patience, it often took four to six months to finish an enamel miniature of such supreme quality.
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J.D. Piguet was an expert craftsman who produced his watches in partnership with Henry Capt and Philippe Samuel Meylan and later also with his sons. Meylan came to Geneva at the age of 20 to work for Audemars Frères. He opened his own workshop near Le Brassus in 1811 but returned to Geneva later. He met Piguet and formed a partnership with him. They worked in Geneva under the name Piguet & Meylan from 1811 to 1828. The company was well known for the production of early China-watches and became famous for its pocket watches with special functions. They created automatons with man and animal shapes and intricate musical mechanisms as well as skeleton watches.