Important French hour striking coach watch with alarm Circa 1625

Gilt-brass one-handed pre-balance verge by Jacques Duduict
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A rare and large French gilt brass one-handed hour striking verge coach watch with alarm, circa 1625. The timepiece features a signed gilded full plate movement with a verge escapement, pierced and engraved pinned-on balance cock, plain flat steel balance, wheel and click set up, blued steel locking plate, and stop work for alarm and going trains, all beneath decoratively pierced and engraved cocks. It strikes on a bell to the inside case back and includes pierced Egyptian pillars, fusee and chain. The gilded dial is engraved with flowers and foliage, and it has an applied chapter ring with Roman numerals. The time is indicated via the turned central blued steel hand, and there is an inner revolving chapter ring with a cruciform centre for setting the alarm time. The gilt-brass case has plain covers, and rounded case sides decoratively pierced and engraved with scrolling flowers, foliage, and dolphins’ heads. The inside front lid is adorned with an engraved wreath, and the pendant is substantially fixed.
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Diameter: 80 mm
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Weight: 496 g
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Signed: Jacques Duduict à Blois
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A watch of oval form, with a dial similar to the present watch by Jacques Duduict, is illustrated in Tardy, Dictionnaire des Horlogers Français, p.197. Although designed as a coach watch and consequently of a large size, the present watch nevertheless displays particularly intricate and fine floral engraving, which was popular in the earlier part of the 17th century. After the design was engraved onto the case, it was also pierced to allow the strike to resonate.
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Blois, located in central France, was a favoured residence of many Kings and Queens of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. As a result, it attracted numerous skilled craftsmen to the surrounding areas, seeking opportunities within these influential circles. One notable watchmaker, Jacques Duduict (listed between 1599 and 1645), hailed from Blois. Duduict was not only known for his exceptional watchmaking skills but also for his work on fine solar instruments. In 1631, he published a document detailing the use of solar watches to determine both the meridian and the height of the pole while at sea.
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Watchmaker Jacques Duduict (1599-1645) was a native of Blois who specialized in the making of solar watches. In 1631 he published a printed paper titled ‘Le Nouveau Sciataire’ about the production of solar watches allowing the determination of the meridian and the height of the pole on the sea.