Swiss platinum lever with relief case by Hans Erni Circa 1979

Platinum limited edition dress watch by Piguet
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A very fine, extremely rare and thin Swiss platinum open faced keyless lever dress watch with original relief case decoration by Hans Erni, circa 1979. Made in a limited edition to comemmorate the 50th anniversary of the Lucerne Tir Federal Schützenfest in 1979. Rhodium plated, Geneva striping decoration, 20 jewels, straight-line lever escapement, mono-metallic balance, selfcompensating flat balance spring, shock absorbers on the escape and balance wheel pivots. White lacquered dial with narrow black Roman numerals, outer minute track and original blued steel Breguet hands. Polished case, inclined bezel, the back decorated with special high relief panel by Hans Erni dated 1978, depicting the crouching figure of William Tell with a crossbow. Movement signed. Accompanied by the original fitted box.
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Diameter: 41 mm
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Signed: Piguet Swiss – 50 Eidg. Schvtzenfest Lvzern 1979
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Hans Erni (born 1909) was a Swiss painter and sculptor. Born in Lucerne, he is known for illustrating postage stamps, lithographs for the Swiss Red Cross and participation on the Olympic Committee. The Hans Erni House in the Lucerne Transportation Museum contains a large collection of artwork.
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The Schützenfest (German ‘marksmen’s festival’) is an annual traditional event celebrated in the Northwest regions of Germany, Bavaria and Switzerland. It is a kind of fair featuring a shooting match among members of the local marksmen’s association and usually takes place in summer. At a Schützenfest, contestants prove their shooting ability, for example by aiming at a wooden eagle. The winner becomes the ‘Schützenkönig’ (‘king of marksmen’) until the following year’s competition.