Round Watch

This is the earliest and most valuable of the enamel-decorated watches in the museum. The box and lid are wide to allow room for the rich decoration, while the movement is flattened for aesthetic reasons. On the box and on the lid are depicted Venus and Mars, Narcissus and the Four Seasons. A landscape is engraved on the silver dial. The technique of miniature painting in enamel to embellish luxury timepieces developed in the seventeenth century mainly in France. The watchmaker David Bouquet, a native of Lyons, emigrated to London before 1622 and remained there until his death (1665), but his timepieces retained the distinctive features of French watches.