Swiss minute repeater watch 18C gold full hunter cased Circa 1860

Pocket watch with seconde morte and split seconds
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An extremely rare Geneva gold full hunter cased watch with minute repeater,  seconde morte and split seconds, made by Legrandroy et Fils in Genève, Switzerland, circa 1860. This full hunter cased watch is crafted from 18 Carat gold is numbered, has engine turned lids on both sides. The white enamel dial has Arabic five minute numerals, Roman hour numerals and gold Breguet hands. The movement has a Geneva high class precision lever escapement, tandem winding according to Mairet, a minute repeater and ‘seconde morte’ with split seconds.
The dial is signed.
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Diameter: 54 mm
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Weight: 160 g
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Signed: Legrandroy et Fils, Genève
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The watch is a masterpiece of Geneva watchmaking and can be compared with movements by Louis Audemars. The so called “independent split dead seconds” in combination with a minute repeater is one of the rarest complications. Only a few examples are known! In 1862 the company exhibited under the name “Moulinie & Legrandroy” at the World’s Fair in London and received a medal. A few years later the name changed to “Le Grand Roy & Fils Geneve”.
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Moulinié and Legrandroy
The name Moulinié can be traced back to a company called Moulinié & Bautte, which began by manufacturing cases for pocket watches for Jean-Francois Bautte in Geneva during the late 18th century. By 1804, the company, then known as Moulinier, Bautte, and Cie, had started producing watches. It gained a reputation for high quality timepieces from 1808 to 1821. In 1826, the partners went their separate ways: Bautte formed Bautte & Moynier, while Moulinié formed Moulinié Aine & Cie., later becoming Moulinié Frères & Cie after 1840. The company exhibited under the name Moulinie & Legrandroy at the World Exhibition in London in 1862, where it received a medal. The name underwent further changes over the years, becoming J.W. Legrandroy & Fils and Le Grand Roy & Fils twenty years later.