French chronometer with pivoted detent escapement Circa 1828

Fine brass ship’s chronometer Jean François Henri Motel
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An exquisite French marine chronometer with a Berthoud rocker detent escapement, circa 1828. This watch is presented in a mahogany deck box with an inlaid brass shield, slide lid and glass, case key, brass gimbals and bowl. The silvered dial boasts inlaid radial Roman hours, auxiliary seconds and blued Breguet hands. The brass movement has chain/fusee, bi metallic four arm chronometer balance with four adjustable weights and gold and steel screws. According to Berthoud, it also has a pivoted detent escapement and a blued conical balance spring. It was sold to the French Navy in Lorient on March 15, 1828.
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Dimensions box: 140x 75 x 140 mm
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Diameter: 60 mm
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Signed: Henri Motel, Horloger de la Marine Royale
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No one else crafted chronometers with such an elaborate obsession with detail, even when other chronometer makers had long since opted for simpler and tried-and-tested constructions. This is why Motel’s chronometers are now a cult favourite among collectors, who appreciate the perfect quality down to the last detail, such as the small blue screw in one of the four balance weights, the perforated teeth of the escapement wheel or the secret lock of the brass case. Such a chronometer, serial number 67, is among the earlier pieces from Motel’s production.
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Jean-François Henri Motel (1786-1857) was born in Margny-Lès-Compiègne, France, on December 31, 1786, and is considered the best known of Berthoud’s pupils. His father, Louis Nicolas Motel, was a farmer and inn owner. Henri went first to school in Prytanée and then to the Ecole des Arts et Métiers in Chalons. In 1806, he received the qualification of candidate and was chosen to study watchmaking in Paris at the state’s expense. His tutor was Louis Berthoud, ‘Horloger Mécanicien de la Marine’ (watchmaker to the French Marine). Motel had barely completed his apprenticeship with Berthoud when Berthoud died suddenly in September 1813. Berthoud’s widow asked Motel to continue Berthoud’s workshop and train his sons further. In August 1819, Motel married Louise Elisabeth Herbet, and in 1823, he settled in the Rue de l’Abbaye. In 1827, he presented his works for the first time and received a silver medal from the jury for his chronometers and astronomical clocks, as well as the comment… nobody keeps time as precisely as Motel.