Swiss maritime open faced pocket watch with compass Circa 1920

Rare silver pocket watch and compass by the inventor captain Henry Vincent
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A Swiss maritime pocket watch with compass Montre Boussole according to the patent of Captain Henry Vincent, circa 1920.
A rare Swiss lever watch and compass in a silver open faced case, circa 1920. Gilt 4/5 plate keyless movement with going barrel and screw compensation balance. Plain cock with polished steel regulator, uncut bimetallic balance with over coil hairspring. Club foot lever escapement. Very unusual white enamel dial combining both indications for the watch and the compass. Luminous Arabic numerals for the hours 1-12 and small red numerals for 13-24. At the centre a star for the compass and at the edge the quarter cardinal compass points. The bezel has faded markings in degrees, blue steel hands. Faded polished nickel open faced case with slide to block the compass needle.
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Diameter: 54 mm
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Weight: 110 g
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Signed: Montre Boussole du Capitaine Vincent importé de Suisse
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A timekeeper owned by the inventor captain Henry Vincent, helping him navigate in stormy seas.
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A very rare watch using the same dial for both time and direction.
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Pocket watches a with compass
Pocket watches with compass are available in various designs, today even with an electronic compass such as the Tissot T-Touch or from Casio or Suunto.
There used to be the “Montre Boussole du Capitaine Vincent” an invention of Captain Charles Adolphe Henri Vincent in Reims. Swiss clocks from e.g. Droz & Cie, Saint-Imier or French clocks from Louis Gruet in Besançon were used.