Important English/Swiss Grande Complication Circa 1885

Gold lever watch with 14 complications
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An important, rare and very heavy English/Swiss 18 carat gold hunting cased trip minute repeating astronomical pocket watch, the Grande Complication with 14 complications, made by LeCoultre and W.G. Schoof in London, circa 1885. The former property of an English aristocrat, the Earl of Tankerville. The highly complicated English lever movement with LeCoultre caliber No. 44, a diamond endstone, free swinging hairspring and tandem winding.
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White enamel dial with Roman hours, outer minute divisions, a fifth of a second track, Arabic five minute numerals, subsidiary dials for the months and leap year indication with concentric 60 minute counter at 12 o’clock, days of the week at 9, the date at 3, auxiliary seconds with an aperture for the moon phases and a lunar calendar at 6, and blued spade hands. The plain case with London Hallmarks for 1885 and maker’s mark GHH for George Henry Harwood.
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Case numbered, movement signed and numbered. Comes with the original mahogany presentation box featuring a mother-of-pearl inlay.
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Diameter: 59.5 mm
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Weight: 253 g
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Signed: W.G. Schoof 99 St John St Road Clerkenwell London
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Reference 0300000.
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List of complications:
1. Grande sonnerie;
2. petite sonnerie;
3. mute;
4. and 5. trip minute repeater;
6. chronograph;
7. 60 minute counter;
8. to 12. perpetual calendar taking into account the length of the month and leap years;
13. moon phases;
14. moon age.
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Trip repeaters allow the user to elegantly and effortlessly sound the repeater with the light push of a button. Trip repeaters are much more complicated.
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William George Schoof was born in 1830, Flensburg and died 1901. He was a respected German chronometer maker. For a short time Schoof worked in Rostock, Germany, and from 1856, in London. With his extremely fine, high quality watches he took part in chronometer competitions in Greenwich and Geneva.
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One is not aware of any other such complicated watch from this maker. A technically comparable watch was auctioned in 2007, Geneva and achieved CHF 88.500.
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The Earl of Tankerville is a noble title drawn from Tancarville in Normandy. The title was created three times: twice in the peerage of England and once in 1714, in the peerage of Great Britain for Charles Bennett, second Baron of Ossulston. His father, John Bennett, first Baron of Ossulston, was the elder brother of Henry Bennett, first Earl of Arlington. The family seat was Chillingham Castle in Northumberland.