Silver gilt & rock crystal tulip bud cased verge

Stock No. 1511

Alberten Lasacher
Cologne, c 1630 & c1730
Silver gilt & rock crystal Tulip Bud case, 34 x 28 mm
Verge escapement

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A wonderful early 17th century silver gilt ‘tulip bud’ case with rock crystal covers, containing a custom made German verge movement made in about 1730

MOVEMENT : Egg shaped plates (23 x 20 mm.), gilded verge escapement, with the winged balance cock nicely engraved with a family coat of arms featuring a winged horse above a helmet, with clasped hands below. Further fine engraving to the pierced silver plate, blued silver regulator disk and blued screws. Three faceted baluster pillars.
Signed “Colln A. Anto Lasacher“.

The movement is in fine condition and is running well.

DIAL : Fine silver gilt dial, the centre engraved “COLLN’ , set in an oval gilt dial plate engraved with flowers.
Later blued steel hands.

Very good condition throughout.

CASE : Silver gilt and gilt metal, consisting of an oval body with three covers, each cover made of rock crystal panels set into engraved gilt bezels. The two side crystal panels are shaped to resemble petals.
The body is of silver gilt, chased with flowers and foliage, with a silver pendant shaped as a flower stalk.

Good condition throughout, though with wear to the gilding of the silver body. The hinges and catches are fine and all three covers close correctly..

The case of this watch, and probably the dial plate, are from the first half of the 17th century. The movement and dial were specially made for this case around 1730, probably for the family whose arms appear on the balance cock.

Alberten Lasacher (also Lasacker) is listed in Cologne in 1735.

Provenance : This watch was  sold at Antiquorum Auctioneers in Geneva in 2005.

There are two, almost identical, examples of this watch case in the wonderful collection at the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva.  A slightly small example is by Jacques Sermand, Geneva, dated c1635 and a slightly larger example by Jean II Rousseau, Geneva, dated c1650.  Another example by Rousseau was sold at auction in 2017 :

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