Swiss/German 14K rose gold open faced lever watch Circa 1890

Rose gold anker chronometer by Wilhelm Bröcking
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A rare Swiss/German 14 carat rose gold open faced anker chronometer, circa 1890. Bridge movement, two barrels with clicks and a long counter pressure spring, a piston tooth lever escapement and large screw compensation balance. The cuvette is inscribed W. Bröcking Uhrmacher der deutschen Seewarte Hamburg. White enamel dial with Roman hours, an outer minute track, sunk subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock and spade & whip hands. A plain case. Cuvette signed, case and movement with matching numbers.
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Diameter: 50 mm
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Weight: 96 g
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Signed: W. Bröcking Uhrmacher der deutschen Seewarte Hamburg
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The watchmaking family Bröcking was held in high esteem in Hamburg. The company was founded by Johann Wilhelm Hinrich Bröcking in 1830. His son Wilhelm Bröcking, born in 1834, took over the business after he died in 1862. From 1883, Wilhelm was a watchmaker at the Hamburg Maritime Observatory and was, among other things, responsible for the electrical impulse to trigger the time ball in the port of Hamburg, which was used for the chronometer adjustment on ships. He made pocket and deck chronometers, some of which were submitted to the chronometer tests of the German Maritime Observatory. He also built the clock on the Hamburg Stock Exchange, which was in operation until 1972. After Wilhelm died in 1897, the company in Hamburg, most recently established at Jungfernstieg 7, was continued by his descendants until 1962.