Swiss gold quarter repeating musical automaton Circa 1810

Gold repeating musical watch with automaton
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A fine and rare Swiss yellow gold open faced quarter repeating musical automaton pocket watch, circa 1810. Engraved gilt full plate verge movement, pierced and engraved balance cock, pinned barrel musical movement, repeating on two steel gongs. The face with a polychrome enamel scene depicting a landscape with a lake, classical buildings, snow-capped mountains and a fountain with a dolphin head surrounded by flowers, varicoloured automaton figures in the foreground of two musicians and a small bird, a small eccentric gilt dial at 12 o’clock with Arabic numerals, an engine-turned centre and blued steel hands. Plain case, a milled band with a button to activate the automaton. The dial band is signed and numbered.
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Diameter: 58 mm
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Signed: Henry Capt à Genève
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Watches with music and automata such as the present piece were typical objects made in Geneva for export to China.
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Henry-Daniel Capt was an independent Swiss watchmaker who specialized in watches with additional complications such as musical watches and automatons. Capt was one of the first in Geneva to use barrels and crowns in his automatons. He was born in Chenit in the Vallée de Joux in April 1773, as the son of Jaques Samuel Capt and Susanne Piguet. His brother was Charles Samuel Capt. On January 1st, 1796, he married Henriette Piguet. In the Vallée de Joux, Capt trained as an établisseur. Around 1789, Henry settled in Geneva and worked for renowned companies such as Jaquet-Droz, Godet, Leschot and his brother-in-law Daniel Isaac Piguet. In 1802 he went into partnership with Daniel Isaac Piguet, which lasted until 1811. When this partnership ended, Capt kept producing his pieces before entering another partnership with Aubert et Fils in 1830 as Aubert & Capt, located in Place Bel-Air, Geneva. The firm was taken over by his son, Henry Capt, in 1844. He opened a shop on the Rue du Rhône in 1855, which quickly gained an excellent reputation. During the 1870s, the Henry Capt company advertised that they were the only Geneva watch manufacturer to have a branch retail house in London. He also established branches in Paris, Nice and New York. The house of Henry Capt flourished for many decades. Henry-Daniel Capt died in 1841.