Rare Swiss 18 carat gold Scarabaeus Fuchs pocket watch Circa 1980

Gold limited edition IWC pocket watch 
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A limited edition hunting cased Scarabaeus Fuchs pocket watch designed by Professor Ernst Fuchs and made by the International Watch Company in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, circa 1980. This numbered full hunter watch is crafted from 18 carat gold, the front lid has a swirling pattern symbolizing day and sunlight with a scarabaeus in the center and the artist’s signature on the inside, on the back lid a decoration symbolizing the moon and stars. The gold dial has the shape of the sun, and the snake hands are designed and handcrafted by the artist. The IWC precision movement is of chronometer quality, has a lever escapement, a fine adjusting device, is hand engraved and gilded. The watch comes with the original papers in a fine wooden presentation box with veneers from the rootstock of a walnut tree and the original label. It’s probably unused.
The case lids are signed on the inside.
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Diameter: 56 mm
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Weight: 155 g
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Signed: IWC International Watch Co Schaffhausen
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The Scarabaeus Fuchs has reference No. 5420 and the present piece is numbered 202/5000.
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According to the sales brochure, the lead time for each watch was a full 18 months. The case was designed by Professor Ernst Fuchs and completed by the world famous bronze caster Venturi. The watch has been practically untouched and unpolished since the 1980s. This watch was originally intended to be produced in an edition of 2.500 pieces. All watches that have been sold on the market have lower numbers. Today it is assumed, that only about 150 pieces were made in 18 carat gold.
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Ernst Fuchs was born on February 13th, 1930 and he died on November 9th, 2015. Fuchs was a renowned Austrian painter and visionary architect of the late 20th century, a draftsman, printmaker, sculptor, stage designer, composer, poet and singer. He is further recognized as a founding figure and leading member of the Vienna School of Fantastic Realism. Known for his eccentricity and prolific output, he collaborated on numerous significant architectural and design projects across various artistic fields.

In 1972, he acquired the derelict villa of Otto Wagner in Hütteldorf, which he restored and transformed. The villa was inaugurated as the Ernst Fuchs Museum in 1988.

Fuchs studied sculpture with Emmy Steinbock in 1943, attended the St. Anna Painting School where he studied under Professor Fröhlich in 1944 and entered the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna in 1945 where he began his studies under Professor Robin C. Anderson, later moving to the class of Albert Paris von Gütersloh.
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International Watch Company Schaffhausen (IWC) was founded in 1868 by Florentine Ariosto Jones (1841–1916), an American engineer and watchmaker from Boston, Massachusetts, who had been a director of E. Howard & Co. in Boston, America’s leading watchmaking company at the time.

He established the company intending to combine modern engineering technology from the U.S. with the craftsmanship of the Swiss to manufacture high quality watches exclusively for the American market. Then, wages in Switzerland were relatively low although there was a ready supply of skilled watchmaking labour mainly carried out by people in their homes. Jones encountered opposition to his plans in French speaking Switzerland. People feared for their jobs and the work they did at home because he wanted to open a factory.

In 1850, Schaffhausen was in danger of being left behind in the Industrial Age. At this stage, watch manufacturer and industrialist Johann Heinrich Moser built Schaffhausen’s first hydroelectric plant laying the cornerstone for future industrialization. He probably met Jones in Le Locle and showed great interest in his plans. Together, they laid the foundations for the only watch manufacturer in northeast Switzerland: the International Watch Company in Schaffhausen.