pplater
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The first (?) tourbillon….
One way or another along this journey, we have all come to learn that Abraham Louis Breguet gave us the tourbillon as a device to ‘counter the effects of gravity’ upon the movement of a watch. What, though, did that first whirlygig look like?
A lazy Sunday is as good a time as any to drag it out. Here’s a scan from Richard Good’s book “Watches”, saved from an old PuristS post.
Breguet fitted the ‘new mechanism’ – tourbillon with spring detent - to a watch by English watchmaker John Arnold in 1808. As a tribute upon the death of Arnold he presented the watch to Arnold’s son, engraved with an inscription asserting that it was the first such application of the mechanism. Apparently, however, one earlier application has been validated, sold in 1805 and exhibited in 1806, which would still make it 11 years after the ostensible invention and 5 years after the patent (source: tourbillonwatchesdotcom). Does anyone know which one?
Doubtless there are other and better photos of the movement, which is in the British Museum. How about it, aaron, do you have some?
As a footnote, it seems that Richard Good was no slouch in the tourbillon stakes himself, having designed multi-axis tourbillons including a triple-axis tourbillon for fitting in a marine chronometer. Does anybody know anything about that? Did he take the tourbillon from his carriage clocks and introduce it to a wristwatch? Is Richard Good still with us? Does anyone have photos of his work?
Cheers,
pplater.
The first (?) tourbillon….
