French silver oignon verge clock watch with alarm Circa 1700

Silver oignon watch by Étienne François Bobillier
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A French silver verge oignon watch with alarm, circa 1700. The watch features a gilded full plate movement, signed Bobillier à Besançon, with a verge escapement, a plain flat balance, a decoratively pierced and engraved balance bridge, fusee and chain, Egyptian pillars and a silver regulation plate with a blued steel rack. Additionally, it has a decoratively engraved alarm barrel and an alarm hammer striking a bell to the inner case back. The dial has a white enamel chapter ring raised at the hours with blue Roman numerals and inner quarter hour divisions. The dial center features a gilded engraved alarm disc and a single turned, blued steel hand alongside two winding apertures on the chapter ring for the alarm and going trains. The silver case has a back chased and engraved with scrolling foliage, birds and dogs while the band is pierced for sound emission. The bezel is chased and engraved with foliage, and there is an indistinct punch mark inside the back beneath the bell. The key is decoratively pierced, chased and masked.
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Diameter: 58 mm
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Signed: Bobillier, à Besançon
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The movement is simply running for short intervals with the alarm also sounding for brief periods. The alarm disc and hand adjust smoothly. The key winds the watch effectively. There are marks and scratches on the backplate. The dial has some chipping on the inner ring but otherwise remains in generally good condition. The case is rubbed and worn with some cracking around the mount for the bell, showing signs of repairs.
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Étienne François Bobillier from Grand’ Combe-Châteleu in France was born in 1699 and died in 1775. He was married to Marie Ursule Pery.