Old World rail systems were organised in a different way to those of the U.S.A. 'Railway Timekeeper' as a notation on English or Swiss watches does not mean very much. I should have noticed that the watch was already fully wound (the side views show that the chain is all on the fusee-cone). Further investigation needed! (See for more about Lesquereux.)
Could it be that this distinguished scientist returned to his old trade for a while after settling in Columbus, in an attempt to support himself? The coincidence of name and place in Loomes's reference seems too strong to disregard (the date may well be a mistake). In youth he worked in his uncle's watch factory in Le Locle, Switzerland much later (in the 1850s) he settled in Columbus OH, but his deafness made it difficult for him to obtain academic work. A Google search under 'Lesquereux' (I am sure Doug has identified the name rightly) reveals that Leo Lesquereux (1806-1889) was a Swiss-born scientist who, despite the handicap of severely impaired hearing, made himself a leading authority on prehistoric botany, with a special interest in mosses. This watch looks as if it may have some highly interesting connections. In dating this English fusee, how much influence does the dial being signed, "Railway Timekeeper" have? Was that just an arbitrarily chosen clever name, or did this watch find use on the railroad? This is one of those antique pocket watches that when you first get it in you hands, you get that unmistakable intuitive feeling that it is a "keeper". Since my investment in this English fusee to date amounts to $78.00 (winning ebay bid), there is a comfort zone to accomodate the expense of repairs and restoration. The front case lid stops at 90 degrees with a good hinge, but falls loosely forward toward the crystal at about 45 degrees after opening, so this will need attention also. Keith Richmond knows a fusee repair specialist that Keith sends his fusee repairs to, so I will ask Keith about this and plan to send this one in for repair and servicing. I would sure like to know how that happened! The minute and hour hands on this fusee appear to be silver, but unfortunately, the end of the fleur-de-lis minute hand has been snipped off. Sesquerney & Sons" (this is a guess, at best).īeing aware of the proper way to wind a fusee, I gently tried to wind this watch counter-clockwise, but it is frozen tightly in place.
Sesquern (some letters obstructed by manufacturer tooling marks) & Sons" In looking closely at the watch in hand, the missing letters might be "ey", making the name, "S. Upon close examination of the movement signature, it reads exactly as Oliver states, " S. Where would you place this find on a "rarity scale"? Oliver - please accept my personal thank you for your valuable contribution! I will look forward to hearing from you again! Concerning the silver hunter watch case, I had wondered why there were not any of the typical British Hallmarks, and it isn't likely at all that this could be a "recase", because of the integration of the case with the movement by a hinge. In any event the name would be that of a mere retailer, and the actual maker would have been one of the large (by British standards) manufacturers based in or near Liverpool in northern England John Wycherley is a possibility. Sesquern & Sons'?) I shall do some more research on this. I cannot quite read the maker's name on the photographs ('S. Note that this type of movement winds counter-clockwise. The chain is evidently still there, but is it attached to the barrel? These chains often break at one end. This is a 'fusee' movement, with a fine steel chain running from the cone-shaped drum visible in some of the photographs to the spring-barrel. Presumably there were still a few Americans who thought that 'British was best', although in fact it is unlikely that this basic 7-jewel movement would have outperformed a Waltham 57, not to mention a Howard. It is interesting that this English movement has an American-made case (notice the 'mushroom' release button on the pendant, a style never used east of the Atlantic, and the eagle marks). There are two clues: (1) in British practice the flush seconds dial, as seen here, generally gave way to the recessed variety very soon after 1860, somewhat earlier than it did in America (2) the head of the balance-cock retaining screw is quite deep and protrudes through a hole in the dust-cover, a feature which is rarely found before 1860 - earlier screws had shallow countersunk heads and did not stand pround of the cock-foot. I would put the movement a little earlier - about 1860.
0 kommentar(er)
