Danish/Swiss 18K gold chronograph lever watch Circa 1873

Gold chronograph by Jules Jürgensen
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A heavy and fine Danish/Swiss 18 carat gold hunting cased chronograph pocket watch, circa 1873. Bridge movement, a club-tooth lever escapement by Jules Jürgensen, gold screw compensation balance and patented Jürgensen bow setting. White enamel dial with Roman hours, outer minute divisions, an outermost fifth of a second track with Arabic five-minute/second numerals, subsidiary seconds at 5 o’clock and moon hands. The engine-turned case with a reeded band and maker’s mark JJ. Dial signed, movement and cuvette signed and numbered.
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Diameter: 52 mm
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Weight: 153 g
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Signed: Jules Jürgensen Copenhagen
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Jules Jürgensen fitted a simple chronograph with a ratchet wheel to the bridges. The addition of the chronograph increased the price of the watch significantly, which ébauche was made by Piguet Frères. The chronograph’s second hand can be started, stopped and set to zero by pressing the pusher in the case at 12 o’clock.
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Jules Frédéric Jürgensen was born in 1808 and died in 1877. He was the son of Urban Jürgensen and a very eminent watchmaker himself. Jules was born in Le Locle, Switzerland but as a child moved to Denmark with his parents. In 1830, after his father’s death, the company was taken over by Jules and his brother Louis Urban. In 1833, Jules returned to Le Locle and built up a successful business. Jürgensen, who was watchmaker to the King of Denmark, was made a Knight of the Légion d’Honneur and Knight of the Royal Order of Dannebrog. Between 1870 and 1876 he was a member of the commission of surveillance of the Geneva School of Horology, along with Ekegren, Potter and others. He further was a member of many commissions in Switzerland judging horological contests. He stamped most of his watches on the pillar plate under the dial ‘Jules Jürgensen of Copenhagen’.

Jürgensen invented his bow-setting mechanism in 1867. He wanted to prevent any accidental changing of the watch setting. In his design, the cover had to be opened to turn the bow far enough to engage the setting pin. In some of his watches, he did not want the back cover, which was not spring-loaded, to be opened by the owner. Therefore, for his watches with an open face, he used a special case in which the front was designed with a bezel utilizing a lifting mechanism like that in a hunting case. The setting could be done safely, by first opening the front by pushing on the stem, turning the bow until it touched the crystal and then setting the watch. After his death, the business was continued by his brother and in 1886 it was sold to an employee, H. Kiens, whose sons Jules (1837-1894) and Jacques Alfred (1842-1912) continued the business, as did the House of Heuer afterwards.