French 18K gold open faced lever pocket watch Circa 1900

Gold anchor chronometer by Breguet
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A fine French 18 carat gold open faced anchor chronometer, circa 1900. Bridge movement, a piston tooth lever escapement and gold screw compensation balance. White enamel dial with Arabic hours, outer minute divisions, sunk subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock and moon hands. A plain case monogrammed ARZ on the back. Dial signed, case numbered, cuvette signed and numbered. Comes with the original monogrammed presentation box.
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Diameter: 52 mm
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Weight: 97 g
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Signed: Breguet
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Breguet is a Swiss luxury watch, clock and jewellery manufacturer founded by Abraham-Louis Breguet in Paris in 1775. Since 1999, it has been a subsidiary of the Swiss Swatch Group. Headquartered in L’Abbaye, Switzerland, Breguet is one of the oldest surviving watchmaking brands and a pioneer of numerous watchmaking technologies such as the tourbillon, invented by Abraham Breguet in 1801. He also invented and produced the world’s first self winding watch (the Perpétuelle) in 1780, as well as the world’s first wristwatch in 1810 (the Breguet No. 2639 for Caroline Bonaparte, Queen of Naples). Breguet is a highly regarded watch manufacturer. Over the years, notable Breguet patrons and timepiece owners include Emperor of the French Napoléon Bonaparte, King George III, Queen Victoria, Alexander I of Russia, Ettore Bugatti, Sir Winston Churchill, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Gioachino Rossini, Arthur Rubinstein and so on. The Breguet & Fils, Paris No. 2667 (1814) pocket watch is among the most expensive watches sold at auction, fetching CHF 4.339.000 in Geneva in May 2012. The Breguet Sympathique Clock No. 128 & 5009 (Duc d’Orléans Breguet Sympathique), is currently the most expensive Breguet timepiece ever sold at auction, fetching US$ 6,8 million in New York in December 2012.