Magnificent Swiss gold decorative pocket watch Circa 1981

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Kenmerk: TD0478
Diameter: 56 mm

Estimate: € 4.500 - 9.000
Price sold: € 7.500

Gold full hunter pocket watch

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A heavy German 18 carat gold hunting cased limited edition pocket watch with case decoration after the design of Professor Ernst Fuchs of Vienna, circa 1981. Accompanied by a wooden presentation box, test certificate, the original IWC warranty card, original certificate, a booklet, detailed description of the watch and the original price tag. The case with a dedication engraving.

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The front of the case shows a swirling pattern symbolizing day and sunlight with a scarabaeus, a creature of the day that faces the sun, in the center. A beetle has the iridescent colours of a rainbow. It shows the spectral composition of sunlight, a quote from Professor Fuchs from the book that describes the Scarabaeus watch. The back is decorated with a central embossed face surrounded by stylized stars symbolizing the night. The reverse side is the opposite of the scarab: the night. It is the light of the stars and the reflected light of the moon, of the dead stars, thus Professor Fuchs. The gold dial with a carved face of the sun framed by a chapter ring with engraved black Arabic hour numerals and gold, hand made snake hand. The exquisite glazed movement exhibits elaborately hand engraved gilt bridges decorated with swirls and a Glucydur screw balance.
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Diameter: 56 mm
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Weight: 186 g
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Signed: IWC International Watch Co Schaffhausen
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The Scarabaeus Fuchs has reference No. 5420.
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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.

Signed: IWC International Watch Co Schaffhausen