Swiss 18 Carat gold and green enamel Boule de Geneve Circa 1890

Ball form pendant watch with original suspension
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A very fine gold and enamel form watch Boule de Geneve with original suspension, probably made in Switzerland, circa 1890. The open faced ball form shaped case was crafted from 18 Carat gold and green guilloche enamel and is engine turned. The white enamel dial has black Arabic hour numerals except the red twelve, has outer minute divisions and black steel hands. The movement has a cylinder escapement.
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Diameter: 21 mm
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Weight: 29 g
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Signed: No name
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Boule de Genève
A Boule de Genève (Geneva ball) is a pendant watch shaped like a small ball or sphere originating from Geneva, Switzerland. The dial is usually at the bottom of the sphere facing the floor, at the opposite side of the jump ring on the upper part of the sphere. Although there are examples with a front view face. Usually, they were Arabic numeral dials, sometimes Roman and from the 1950’s, different types of hour markers were also used. This objet de vertu frequently came with a matching brooch, chain or chatelaine.
The term Boule de Genève is generic; it doesn’t mean that a given watch was necessarily made in the city or Canton of Geneva. Geneva balls were crafted in different sizes, styles, materials and decorative techniques, such as gold, silver, other metals, guilloché enamel, enamel, cloisonné, adorned with diamonds, pearls, etc. They were intended as an accessory mainly for women.

The first Boules de Genève dates from the 1860’s and were marketed by firms such as Patek Philippe from 1866. They featured the winding mechanism invented by Marius Lecoultre (1847-1915) of Geneva and patented in Switzerland in 1889 (the Swiss patent office was not created until 1888). Winding is done by rotating the hemisphere containing the dial and time setting is done by pressing the protruding, cylindrical shaped button at one side of the orb while turning the hemisphere clockwise or counterclockwise. These watches have no key or crown. Lecoultre’s winding system was also used in some ring watches and wristwatches.

In the 1878 Pairs Exposition Universelle, Patek Philippe devoted a showcase to these ball form timepieces. Years later, they sold pieces to royalty, such as Sultan Hussein Kamel of Egypt in 1887 and Empress Teresa of Brazil in 1888.