Bonhams 1793 : Nicole Nielson & Co. An 18ct gold keyless wind full hunter chronograph pocket watch Numbered 1198, London Hallmark for 1882

Numbered 1198, London Hallmark for 1882
Jewelled English lever 3/4 plate gilt brass movement with cut-compensated bi-metallic balance, white enamel dial with black Roman numerals and outer seconds track, blued steel spade hands and steel chronograph hand, subsidiary seconds at 6, polished round case with snap on back stamped ENCN for Emil Nielson and Charles Nicole, engraved sunburst monogram on the snap on back, round chronograph button in the band, case, dial and movement signed
49mm.

Sold for £2,000 inc. premium

Footnotes

The firm was started by Swiss born watchmakers Charles Victor Adolphe Nicole and Jules Philippe Capt in 1839 and initially operated as Nicole & Capt from 80b Dean Street, Soho, London. By 1858 they had moved to larger premises at 14 Soho Square where they remained until the company finally closed in 1934.

The single most important event regarding the firm output was Patent No 10,348 taken out by Adolphe Nicole in 1844. Among the inventions described, it contains the first practical keyless work for both fusee and going-barrel watches. This was to provide the mainstay of future production for the firm and pointed the way for watch development worldwide. Also included in the Patent was chronograph work that allows a second hand to be 'returned to zero' by use of a heart shaped cam, a feature still used in mechanical chronographs today.

Around 1870, Danish born Sophus Emil Nielsen joined Adolphe Nicole, and by 1876 the firm had changed their name to Nicole, Nielsen & Co. In the 1880s the business was being run by Emil together with three of Adolphe's children: Charles Nicole, Harriet Victoire Nielsen and Zelia Louise Nicole. In December 1885 their partnership was dissolved and three years later the business was converted into a limited liability company under the title Nicole, Nielsen & Co. Ltd.