Very fine and extremely rare large perpétuelle Swiss watch Circa 1795

Large silver perpétuelle Swiss pocket watch
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A very fine and extremely rare, large, silver, self-winding perpétuelle watch. Made by Meuron et Comp. Circa 1795.
Two-body Consular polished case with a reeded bezel. White enamel dial with Arabic numerals with outer minute star divisions and Arabic 15-minute numerals. Gold pierced Directoire hands.
Frosted gilt movement with a full plate, ogival polished oscillating weight pivoted at the circumference and oscillating between two steel spring bumpers, going barrel, transmission to the mainspring barrel via three wheels, cylinder escapement, three-arm brass balance with flat balance spring mounted on the dial plate and a rack and pinion regulation via a silvered scale on the backplate.
Dial and movement signed.
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Diameter: 59 mm
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Signed: Meuron et Comp.
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Early self-winding watches are extremely rare and very few are known. The present watch was made at a time when watchmakers were experimenting with the idea of the ‘perpetuelle’ or self-winding watch mechanism. Whilst it is Breguet who is most famous for the perpetuelle movement, the invention itself is thought to have been made by Perrelet around 1770. During the last quarter of the 18th century several makers attempted to perfect the perpetuelle but most of those watches were not particularly successful requiring considerable movement to maintain enough power. As is well known, Breguet did perfect the mechanism and made watches that reacted to the slightest touch. The present watch is one of the small number of early self-winding watches to survive and is of great interest in the development of horology.