A J. F Bautte gold open faced enamel key wind watch, gilt…
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A J. F Bautte gold open faced enamel key wind watch, gilt cylinder movement with three-arm balance, engine turned off set steel dial with Roman numerals with outer minute border and steel moon-style hands. The champleve case decorated in a foliate design. The factory engraved cuvette signed 'J. F. Bautte, Geneva' and numbered 46646. circa 1830's. Provenance: Christie's 1979. Other Notes: Jean-Francois Bautte was an eminent watch maker in Geneva & Paris, who specialised in making very thin watches. This example is just under 6 mm thick.

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  • Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.
  • Foliate - Decorated with leaves or leaf-like forms.
  • Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
  • Engine Turned - Engine turning is a decorative technique used on metal surfaces to create intricate curving or geometric pattern. The process involves cutting a series of lines into the surface of the metal using a rose engine or decoration lathe which rotates the metal as it cuts, allowing the operator to create a repeating pattern that covers the entire surface. The resulting surface has a shimmering, reflective quality that is often described as "engine turned." Where an engine turned item has been enamelled, the term used to describe the decoration is usually guilloche.

    Engine turning was originally developed to decorate metal objects such as firearms, scientific instruments, and other metal objects that required precise and elegant design.

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