Swiss gold lever watch with six complications Circa 1890

Gold heavy full hunter with minute repeater
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A heavy, complicated minute repeating hunting cased pocket watch made by Invicta in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, circa 1890. The numbered case of this watch, crafted from 18 carat gold, features three gold lids and its cuvette is marked Médaille d’or 1805 and Répétition à minutes. The white enamel dial has Arabic hours, outer minute divisions, an outermost fifth of a second track calibrated from 0-300, moon phases with concentric subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock, the date at 12, two central apertures for digital indication of the days of the week and month of the year, and gold hands. The movement is fitted with a Swiss lever escapement and six complications, viz, a minute repeater, chronograph, triple calendar and moon phase indication.
The cuvette is signed.
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Diameter: 57 mm
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Weight: 123 g
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Signed: Invicta
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Invicta
In 1837, the long history of the Invicta Watch Group began in Switzerland, where it was founded by Raphael Picard in La Chaux-de-Fond, with the aim of making high quality, affordable Swiss mechanical watches. The name “Invicta” means “invincible” in Latin.

The Picard family maintained control for over a century, operating as “Les Fils de R. Picard”. The company gained recognition, receiving a gold medal in 1914 and supplying watches to Allied forces during World War II. In 1959, Invicta was commissioned to produce watches for Soviet Navy officers.

The rise of Japanese quartz watches in the 1970s, known as the “quartz crisis,” negatively impacted Swiss watchmakers. Invicta joined a Swiss consortium but ultimately went bankrupt and was liquidated in 1982. Although the brand’s trademarks were acquired by others in the 1980s, it did not find commercial success.

In 1991, an American investment group led by Eyal Lalo acquired the Invicta brand. The new owners moved the headquarters to Hollywood, Florida and repositioned the brand to focus on producing large, bold and affordable watches with designs often inspired by high end Swiss brands. The company grew through e commerce and a direct-to-consumer approach. In the early 2000s, it adopted the name Invicta Watch Group to reflect its expansion and acquisition of other brands like S. Coifman, TechnoMarine and Glycine. The group also entered into numerous licensing agreements with various entertainment and sports entities.

Today, the Invicta Watch Group is known for its wide selection of collections at accessible price points.