English 18K gold full hunter with Champlevé dial Circa 1880

Gold full hunting cased pocket watch by José Rodriguez Losada
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An early English gold hunting cased watch with a Champlevé dial, made for the South American market, circa 1880.
Polished 18K gold case, all three lids made of gold, and the dome signed and inscribed. Exceptionally beautiful Champlevé dial, inner and outer borders with applied cast leaf decoration, typical for the South American market, with Roman radial hours, outer minutes track, subsidiary dial for the seconds, and red gold Louis XV-style hands. Signed early bridge movement with a large compensation balance.
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Diameter: 52 mm
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Weight: 109 g
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Signed: J.R. Losada London
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José Rodriguez Losada, Spanish watchmaker
José Rodríguez Losada was born in Iruela, in the province of Leon, on May 8, 1797. During his childhood, he spent some time at a court in Madrid. Losada, a liberal ex-army man, eventually left Spain for political reasons and settled in England, where he set up shop near Euston Road in London. He manufactured a variety of chronometers and watches of the highest quality, which he sold both in the country and shipped to Spain and South America. In 1835 he opened a beautiful showroom at 105 Regent Street. Losada never lost touch with his native Spain, and after 1864, winning an award, he supplied 36 chronometers to the Spanish government through the Royal Observatory in Cadiz. He is also known for the clock tower he donated to the city of Madrid in 1866, which can be seen in the Puerta del Sol. The Horological Journal reported in 1878 that these were “extremely beautiful clocks and all kinds of complicated clocks and repeaters,” as well as “perpetual calendars and chronographs, some exceptionally good chronometers, fine clocks, astronomical clocks, and coach clocks.” He signed his watches with “JR Losada” He also wrote poems, some of which he dedicated to his friend Joseph Zorrilla.
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José Rodríguez Losada died in London on March 6, 1870, but his shop remained on Regent Street until about 1890.