102nd Auction
2020/6/29
Lot 252
"Huaud Le puisné fecit" / Abraham Dechoudens, 35 mm, 37 g, circa 1680
An important enamel verge pocket watch "Venus and Adonis"
Case: 22k gold frame and polychrome enamel. Dial: enamel. Movm.: full plate movement, chain/fusee, Egyptian movement pillars, applied click work for mainspring, three-arm brass balance.
The enamel pocket watch bears the signature of Jean-Pierre Huaud (1655-1723): "Huaud Le puisné fecit" and its back is decorated with a polychrome enamel painting showing the scantily clad Venus. To her left, Adonis plays the flute.
Diana, goddess of the hunt, is shown in the centre of the dial, surrounded by a white enamel chapter ring with Roman hours. The case is ornamented with four vignettes showing castles and farm buildings in alpine lake settings; they are separated by yellow scrolls on blue ground. The signature plaque sits at 6 o’clock. The inside is painted with the figure of a hiker dressed in blue near the ruin of a temple, surrounded by leafy trees. A fortress on a riverbank is seen in the background. The motif was probably taken from a painting by Dutch painter Paul Bril (1556-1626) or Gabriel Perelle (1604-1677).
The exquisitely painted enamel cases created by the Huaud brothers stand out among the works produced at the Geneva school because of their unique and fascinating beauty – they were not only highly praised at the time, but also regarded as masterpieces in the centuries to follow.
Pierre, who was the founder of the Huaud dynasty was born in 1612 in Geneva, the son of French goldsmith Jean Huaud. He settled in Geneva in 1630. Three of his eleven children also became famous enamelers: Pierre II (1647-1698), Jean-Pierre (1655-1723) and Ami (1657-1724). It is a fair assumption that they were all trained by their father and worked with him.
Jean-Pierre Huaud, Pierre Huaud’s second son, was born in Geneva in 1655. Only very few watches that bear his signature with the additional "puisné" have survived the years. Most of his work was done in collaboration with his brother Ami, with whom he entered a partnership in 1682 - in 1686 the brothers were appointed painters to the Prussian court of Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg (1620-1688).
Abraham Dechoudens was a master watchmaker in Geneva in the first half of the 17th century. He trained a great number of apprentices such as Jean Ficher in 1623 and Huguin Duverney in 1631.
Source: "Dictionnaire des Horlogers Genevois" by Osvaldo Patrizzi, Geneva 1998.
An important enamel verge pocket watch "Venus and Adonis"
Case: 22k gold frame and polychrome enamel. Dial: enamel. Movm.: full plate movement, chain/fusee, Egyptian movement pillars, applied click work for mainspring, three-arm brass balance.
The enamel pocket watch bears the signature of Jean-Pierre Huaud (1655-1723): "Huaud Le puisné fecit" and its back is decorated with a polychrome enamel painting showing the scantily clad Venus. To her left, Adonis plays the flute.
Diana, goddess of the hunt, is shown in the centre of the dial, surrounded by a white enamel chapter ring with Roman hours. The case is ornamented with four vignettes showing castles and farm buildings in alpine lake settings; they are separated by yellow scrolls on blue ground. The signature plaque sits at 6 o’clock. The inside is painted with the figure of a hiker dressed in blue near the ruin of a temple, surrounded by leafy trees. A fortress on a riverbank is seen in the background. The motif was probably taken from a painting by Dutch painter Paul Bril (1556-1626) or Gabriel Perelle (1604-1677).
The exquisitely painted enamel cases created by the Huaud brothers stand out among the works produced at the Geneva school because of their unique and fascinating beauty – they were not only highly praised at the time, but also regarded as masterpieces in the centuries to follow.
Pierre, who was the founder of the Huaud dynasty was born in 1612 in Geneva, the son of French goldsmith Jean Huaud. He settled in Geneva in 1630. Three of his eleven children also became famous enamelers: Pierre II (1647-1698), Jean-Pierre (1655-1723) and Ami (1657-1724). It is a fair assumption that they were all trained by their father and worked with him.
Jean-Pierre Huaud, Pierre Huaud’s second son, was born in Geneva in 1655. Only very few watches that bear his signature with the additional "puisné" have survived the years. Most of his work was done in collaboration with his brother Ami, with whom he entered a partnership in 1682 - in 1686 the brothers were appointed painters to the Prussian court of Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg (1620-1688).
Abraham Dechoudens was a master watchmaker in Geneva in the first half of the 17th century. He trained a great number of apprentices such as Jean Ficher in 1623 and Huguin Duverney in 1631.
Source: "Dictionnaire des Horlogers Genevois" by Osvaldo Patrizzi, Geneva 1998.
Sold
estimated
10.000—30.000 €
Price realized
16.900 €