‘Revolutionary’ watch once owned by King George III – but never fully paid for by him – is expected to make £1million as it goes under the hammer
- French watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet made the gold Tourbillon Watch
- The King had to buy it discreetly in 1808 because of the Napoleonic Wars
- To prevent its seizure, Breguet signed the Tourbillon carriage inside the watch
A rare and revolutionary watch which belonged to King George III is expected to fetch up to £1million at auction.
French watchmaking ‘genius’ Abraham-Louis Breguet made the gold Tourbillon Watch which represented cutting-edge technology in the early 19th century.
Breguet was the celebrity watchmaker of his era and his creations were sought after by all the crowned heads of Europe, from Marie Antoinette and the King of Spain to Napoleon and Tsar Alexander I.
French watchmaking ‘genius’ Abraham-Louis Breguet made the gold Tourbillon Watch which represented cutting-edge technology in the early 19th century
King George III had to buy it discreetly in 1808 as the Napoleonic Wars meant it was unthinkable for the UK’s monarch to purchase a French watch
The watch features Breguet’s groundbreaking Tourbillon invention – a mechanism that increases the accuracy of a watch by fighting gravity and correcting for positional error.
It is considered one of Breguet’s most important timepieces and was the first Tourbillon he ever sold commercially.
It will go under the hammer at Sotheby’s in London on July 14.
The watch is the only known four-minute Tourbillon with a dial in English and a thermometer
To prevent the chance of its seizure, Breguet only signed the Tourbillon carriage inside the watch
It was bought discreetly by the King, who was passionate about the sciences and horology, for what was the huge sum of FF 4,800.
When it was bought in 1808 in the midst of the Napoleonic Wars, it had to be discreet because it would have been unthinkable for the UK’s monarch to purchase a French watch.
To prevent the chance of its seizure, Breguet only signed the Tourbillon carriage inside the watch.
George III never actually fully paid for it and the Georgian Papers archive contains a bill reminder for an outstanding payment
It is considered one of Breguet’s most important timepieces and was the first Tourbillon he ever sold commercially
In the end, George III never actually fully paid for it and the Georgian Papers archive contains a bill reminder for an outstanding payment.
Worldwide chair of Sotheby’s watch division Daryn Schnipper said: ‘Abraham-Louis Breguet watches were the theory of everything in the early 19th century, incorporating all the scientific discoveries of the past centuries, the philosophy of the Enlightenment and the great vision of a man who revolutionised watchmaking and placed time and precision at the core of modern society.
‘When you hold the watch he made for George III, you instantly know you are in the presence of something truly exceptional.’
It is expected to fetch up for £1million when it goes under the hammer at Sotheby’s in London on July 14
Worldwide chair of Sotheby’s watch division Daryn Schnipper said that you know you’re in the presence of something exceptional when you hold the watch made for King George III
Daryn Schnipper added that Breguet’s watches tell us the history of the modern world
She added: ‘This watch not only captures Breguet’s genius – the ability to conceal layers of complexity behind apparent simplicity – it also encapsulates why historic timepieces are so relevant today.
‘They transcend the function of mere timekeeping to tell us the history of the modern world.’
Engraved with George III’s royal cypher featuring a crown and the letters G & R, the watch is the only known four-minute Tourbillon with a dial in English and a thermometer.
It also features the indication ‘Whirling About Regulator’, translated from the French ‘Regulateur a Tourbillon’.