Breguet - The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XVIII Hong Kong Friday, May 24, 2024 | Phillips
  • Manufacturer: Breguet
    Year: Circa 1992
    Reference No: 3420 BA
    Case No: 2794B, No. 260/800
    Model Name: Heures Sautantes
    Material: 18K yellow gold
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 562, 25 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Leather
    Clasp/Buckle: 18K yellow gold Breguet pin buckle
    Dimensions: 36mm diameter
    Signed: Case, dial and movement and buckle signed
    Accessories: Accompanied by Breguet certificate of origin stamped Friedrich Haute Joaillerie, Frankfurt and dated December 1992.

  • Catalogue Essay

    The introduction of the jumping hour mechanism is broadly attributed to the Austrian engineer Josef Pallweber in 1883, and the jumping hour was very fashionable in the mid-18th century and later during the Art Deco period. During the Roaring Twenties, they were produced by eminent names of watchmaking, including Breguet, Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin, but the fashion declined with the Great Depression, and ended definitively by World War 2 only to see a rebirth in the early 1990s. The present Breguet reference 3420 BA from circa 1992 marks a continuation to the tradition, and it is a splendid display of technical mastery with the jumping hours movement.

    The timepiece boasts a very simple dial design. The only graphic details are the signature at 6, discreet dotted minute divisions, and the black Breguet numerals. The hour is subtly indicated in red through an aperture positioned at 12 o’clock. A hidden Breguet signature is delightfully revealed under the 60 minutes when the dial is put under specific lighting condition. Complementing the minimalistic dial design, the watch has retained some familiar characteristics emblematic of Breguet’s timeless elegance, including the "Breguet" blued steel minute hand, Breguet style lugs, caseband fluting, and winding crown with a sapphire cabochon.

    Preserved in excellent condition, and accompanied by the original Breguet certificate of origin dated December 1992 and stamped Friedrich Haute Joaillerie, Frankfurt, the present timepiece, numbered 260 of a limited edition of 800 pieces, is a most charming and unusual early example epitomizing the subtle and supremely elegant Breguet design.

  • Artist Biography

    Breguet

    Swiss • 1775

    Established in 1775 by Abraham Louis Breguet, widely considered the greatest watchmaker of all time, the storied brand continues to thrive in the modern era, creating exceptional high-end watches as the Swatch Group's premier prestige brand. Some of the most important and lasting inventions in watchmaking are attributed to Abraham Louis Breguet, including the tourbillon, shock resistance and the use of hammers and gongs employed in nearly all minute repeating watches made since.

    Eighteenth and nineteenth century Breguet pocketwatches are especially sought-after by collectors, and many of them were made for the elite of European society, including Napoléon and Marie Antoinette. Key wristwatches from the twentieth century include oversized dress watches, two-register chronographs, triple calendars and Type XX aviator's chronographs made for the French military and civilians.

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963

Ref. 3420 BA
A fine and elegant limited edition yellow gold wristwatch with enamel dial, jumping hours and certificate of origin, numbered 260 of a limited edition of 800 pieces

Circa 1992
36mm diameter
Case, dial and movement and buckle signed

Estimate
HK$110,000 - 180,000 
€13,200-21,600
$14,100-23,100

Sold for HK$120,650

Contact Specialist

Thomas Perazzi
Deputy Chairman, Watches, Head of Watches, Asia
+852 2318 2031
WatchesHK@phillips.com
 

Gertrude Wong
Head of Sale, Hong Kong
+ 852 2318 2045
gertrudewong@phillips.com
 

The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XVIII

Hong Kong Auction 24 - 25 May 2024