Swiss silver verge watch with enamel painting Circa 1790

Large attractive with multi coloured painting
–
A large, attractive verge watch with enamel painting, made by Girardier Laine in Genève, Switzerland, circa 1790. The numbered open faced plain case is crafted from silver and the dial has a multi coloured enamel painting, a centred dial with an outer ring for the minutes and the hours with black Arabic numerals for the hours and blued steel hands. The gilt movement has a verge escapement.
Dial signed.
–
Diameter: 55 mm
–
Weight: 97 g
–
Signed: Girardier Laine
–
Girardier Laine
Girardier Laine (1759 – 1839), known as “the Elder”, was a master watchmaker who practiced his art of watchmaking in Geneva between the second half of the 18^th and the beginning of the 19^th century. His product signature was linked to the art of Genevan enamelling with hand painted miniatures on the dials. He was also a watchmaker who loved mechanical art for staging of playet with automata, notably Jaquemarts.

The world saw the rebirth of a Geneva watchmaking company in 2018 and so a beautiful story of watchmaking that had fallen asleep at the death of its creator in 1839, rose from its ashes with the desire to participate once again in the history of watchmaking.

* A playet is a staging of a few characters.
**A Jacquemart is an art automaton representing a carved wooden or metal figure, which indicates the hours by striking a bell with a hammer.