Lot 511

Pierre Maingot à Paris, 30 x 41 mm, 62 g, circa 1630
An extremely rare octagonal French watch
Case: silver/brass, firegilt, lavish hand engravings depicting the four seasons and flower tendrils on the front and back side. Dial: brass, firegilt, florally engraved, applied silver chapter ring, radial Roman numerals, single blued steel hand. Movm.: octagonal-shaped full plate movement, frosted, gilt, baluster movement pillars, gut/fusee, verge escapement, ratchet wheel set up with blued steel spring, two-arm iron balance without spring, florally engraved pierced balance cock.
Pierre Maingot
Pierre Maingot the Elder became a master in 1582. We know that he worked in the Rue St. Merry until his death, because his window is still registered at that address 1634, the year he died. His son Pierre became a master in 1605 and worked with his father in his workshop. Not before 1639 he is mentioned at the Rue Neuve St. Mederic, where he remained until 1644. The watch we have here is most likely to have been created by father and son together.
Octagonal-shaped watches
The oval shape was the dominant watch form in the mid-sixteenth century. By the end of the century other geometrically shaped watches square, hexagonal, trapezoidal, and circular-became fashionable. Octagonal-shaped watches, for example, began to appear around 1575. Although most circular and octangonal watches have circular movements, the movement on this watch is octagonal-shaped.

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