112 - École d'Horlogerie Neuchâtel - Montre École

École d'Horlogerie Neuchâtel - Montre École (*) An ornamental Swiss graduate's pocket watch with a skeletonized dial in a niello-silver case with a matching watch chain, made at the Neuchâtel watchmaking school Movement No. 1920, Cal. LeCoultre 19RV, Case No. 1920, Dimensions 53 mm, circa 1900, Weight 80 g, Origin: Switzerland Case: Niello silver, poppy and spike decoration, gold crown, case maker’s punch mark “Niel HF” (Huguenin Frères / Huguenin Frères & Co. / Fabrique Niel). Dial: Skeletonized. Movement: Skeletonized bridge movement, lever escapement, gold screw-compensated balance. The École d’horlogerie de Neuchâtel (Neuchâtel Watchmaking School) was a historic Swiss technical school for watchmaking in the canton of Neuchâtel. Institutions of this kind, founded in the 19th and early 20th centuries, were established to train fully qualified watchmakers and to counteract the subsequent shortage of skilled labor caused by highly specialized, division-of-labor production methods. Graduates of these watchmaking schools often built their own pocket watches or movements as final examination pieces. Today, these watches—known by the designation École d’Horlogerie (e.g., from Neuchâtel or Le Locle)—are traded as rare collector’s items. Case: very good. Dial: very good. Movement: very good, in working order, cleaning recommended.