Swiss gold keyless lever watch with back dial Circa 1940

Gold Art Deco pocket watch
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A Swiss 14 carat yellow gold open faced Art Deco keyless pocket watch made by Cortébert Watch Co. in the Bernese Jura, circa 1940. The case back is polished and monogrammed JL in taille douce, the gilded brass cuvette also engraved in taille douce, reading Colas S.A. à J. Lucchetta 1927-1943. The case is made by Favre & Perret S.A. in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Black metallic dial with suspended Arabic hour numerals, subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock and gilded metal baton hands. Nickel plated movement with a going barrel, straight line lever escapement, monometallic screw balance with poising screws and self compensating flat hairspring, polished steel index regulator with swan neck spring and a micrometric screw. Signature on the dial and movement.
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Diameter: 48 mm
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Weight: 57 g
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Signed: Cortébert 
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Accompanied by a leather pouch.
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In 1790, Switzerland, Abraham-Louis Juillard opened a small watch shop in the village of Cortébert between Saint Imier and Bienne. Although the Cortébert brand name was not registered until 1855, using the bottony cross as logo, this year is commonly used as the date of founding.
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Cortébert was a premium watch brand that manufactured its own movements and supplied them to other brands such as Rolex.
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The company became well known for its railroad watches. They supplied both the Turkish and the Italian railroad companies. In 1927, at Mussolini’s request, Cortébert started distributing watches in Italy under the brand name Perseo, as fascist Italy rejected foreign brand names. It is under this name that their timepieces were used by the Italian railway company.
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By 1944, Cortébert had a lineup of 20 different calibers.
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When the quartz crisis hit the watchmaking industry in the 1970s, the majority of prestige brands ceased production, including Cortébert. Their representatives in Italy bought the Perseo brand name and continue today as an independent company.