English gentleman’s watch for the Indian market Circa 1890

Gold enamel pocket watch by  Hamilton & Co. / Haas Neveux & Co.
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An exquisite gold enamel English gentleman’s pocket watch for the Indian market, circa 1890.
Rhodium-plated bridge movement with Geneva Stripes (fausses côtes) decoration and screw compensation balance. 18 Carat gold, engine-turned and translucent cobalt blue case with an opaque white enamelled backside, bezel and pendant. Signed, silvered dial with Arabic numerals and spade hands.
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Diameter: 46 mm
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Weight: 46 g
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Signed: Hamilton & Co., Calcutta
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Robert Hamilton & Co.
Robert Hamilton was born in 1772. He trained as a silversmith and moved to India in 1808 to open a jewel- and silversmith business in Calcutta under the license of the East Indian Company. Robert Hamilton soon became a very wealthy and well-respected man. He opened branches in others parts of India and were soon known to be the most famous and renowned British silversmith in India. He retired from the business in 1811and devoted the rest of his life to collecting fine paintings; his collection included paintings by Rubens, Velazquez and Holbein. Hamilton died in 1848.
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Haas Neveux & Cie.
Haas Neveux & Cie. left the company B. Haas Jeune & Cie. by Benjamin Haas and was based in Geneva. The company had offices in New York, Paris, Cannes and Besançon. The company was listed as “Manufacture”. In 1902 Haas Neveux & Cie. the first prize for precision in the competition of the renowned “Observatoire de Geneve”. In 1913 the company received a Swiss patent no. 63652. 1914 In the competition of the renowned Geneva Observatory, the company won the prize for the best marine chronometer, as well as various other prizes, including a record prize for the best regulation. In the same year, the company won a grand prize at the exhibition in Bern. In 1929 Haas Neveux & Cie. Member of the jury at the world exhibition in Barcelona. 1939 was the last year the company was listed.
In 1991 the company was re-established, today this brand belongs to the SWC Company Ltd. in South Korea, previously Samsung Watch Co.