Swiss 18 carat gold crown winding pocket watch Circa 1860

Early half hunter cased watch
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A high quality, early half hunter case watch with crown winding, possibly made by Louis Audemars & Cie in Le Crêt Meylan near Le Brassus, Switzerland, circa 1860. The numbered and magnificently decorated case features three lids  crafted from 18 carat gold and a monogram on the back lid. The white enamel dial features an outer minutes track with Arabic numerals for the 15 minute intervals, Roman radial hours, a subsidiary seconds dial at 6 o’clock and the original steel hands. The movement is fitted with fine Louis Audemars & Cie lever escapement and a bishop’s crook lever.
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Diameter: 45 mm
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Weight: 74 g
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Signed: No name
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Louis Audermars & Cie

The original Louis Audemars & Cie was a pioneering Swiss watchmaker distinct from the more famous Audemars Piguet. While the two families were related, their businesses were entirely separate.

The company was founded in 1811 by Louis-Benjamin Audemars in Le Crêt-Meylan, a hamlet near Le Brassus in the Vallée de Joux. Initially, they produced high quality, unbranded movements (ebauches) and complex mechanisms like repeaters and chronographs for larger houses in Geneva and across Europe. Louis-Benjamin dreamed of producing complete, finished watches signed with his own name, but he died in 1833 at age 51 before achieving this goal.

After Louis-Benjamin’s death, his sons took over the business. They successfully fulfilled his dream by becoming the first enterprise in the Vallée de Joux to manufacture complete watches from start to finish under their own name. Their timepieces were almost entirely handmade and are regarded by historians as some of the finest ever created. They gained international prestige, supplying watches to elite clients and participating in world exhibitions.

Despite their technical brilliance, the sons were noted to be far better watchmakers than businessmen. The “Ancienne Maison” (original house) went bankrupt and was liquidated in 1885.