Swiss 18 Carat gold open faced verge pocket watch Circa 1705

Gold and enamel watch with a portrait of Prince Eugene of Savoy
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A fine and rare Swiss 18 Carat gold and enamel open faced verge pocket watch with a portrait of Prince Eugene of Savoy, circa 1705. Round case, a painted on enamel portrait of the Prince dressed in gilt edged armour with white stock and powdered wig. Signed on the counter enamel.
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Diameter: 38 mm
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Signed: Huaud Geneva
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The Huauds were the best known and most prolific family of enamel painters of their days. They descended from a family of goldsmiths in Châtellerault, France, and emigrated to Geneva. The father, Pierre Huaud I (1612 -1680), was a protestant who emigrated to Geneva, where he became an habitant in 1630. He finished his apprenticeship as a goldsmith with Laurent Légaré in 1634 and soon afterwards became master goldsmith. In 1661 he served an apprenticeship in enamel painting with Jean André.
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His three sons became enamel painters as well. Pierre II (1647 – circa 1698) was apprenticed to his father. In 1685/1686 he went to Berlin to work in the service of the Brandenburg Elector. After a brief stay there, he returned to Geneva in 1686. He went back to Germany at the end of 1689, and in 1691 he was named painter-miniaturist to Frederick I. Jean-Pierre (1655 -1723) and his brother Ami (1657-1724) were partners from 1682 to 1688. Like their older brother, they were appointed painters to the Court of the Brandenburg Elector in 1686 and went to Berlin where they lived and worked until 1700, at which point they returned to Geneva. Although much of their work was done in partnership, they also often worked alone.

Eugene of Savoy was born on October 18, 1663, in Paris. He was the fifth son of Prince Eugene Maurice of Savoy-Carignano, Comte de Soissons, grandson to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy and Olympia Mancini, niece to the powerful Cardinal Mazarin. There were rumours that his real father was Louis XIV. He quickly distinguished himself in battle and advanced in rank to imperial field marshal at age 29. He fought notably against the Turks in central Europe and the Balkans and France in the War of the Grand Alliance and the War of the Spanish succession. With his friend the duke of Marlborough, he won the important victory at the Battle of Blenheim (1704) and ousted the French from Italy. In 1718 he won a great triumph over the Turks, taking the city of Belgrade. He later served as governor in the Austrian Netherlands (1714-1724). An outstanding strategist and an inspired leader, he was regarded as one of the greatest soldiers of his generation. At his death, in 1736, Eugene was one of the wealthiest men in Europe. His fortune passed to his niece, Princess Victoria of Savoy-Carignan whom he had never met. She sold his extensive library to the Austrian Emperor, and it formed the core of what is today the Austrian National Library.