This lot is offered without reserve.

Anon. An unusual 18K pink gold keywound verge watch, made for the commemoration of the Polish constitution of 1791

UNSIGNED, CIRCA 1800

Details

Anon. An unusual 18K pink gold keywound verge watch, made for the commemoration of the Polish constitution of 1791
Unsigned, circa 1800
Thin full plate mechanical verge movement, chain fusée, white enamel dial, Roman numerals, centred by painted polychrome enamel scene depicting the Polish Eagle and various inscriptions referring to the 3 May 1791 Constitution, circular plain case, pendant stamped TC and numbered 5680
52 mm. diam.

Special Notice

This lot is offered without reserve.

Brought to you by

Dr. Nathalie Monbaron

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Lot Essay

Based on the inscription on the dial of the present watch it was made to commemorate the Polish Constitution of 3 May 1791. It was drafted between 6 October 1788 and 3 May 1791, and adopted as a "Government Act" by the Sejm (parliament) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth on 3 May 1791. The constitution was designed to redress political defects of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth; the system of "Golden Liberty" had conferred disproportionate rights on the nobility, and over time had increasingly corrupted politics. The historian Norman Davies describes the Constitution of 3 May 1791, as "the first constitution of its type in Europe"; other historians call it the world's second oldest constitution, after the U.S. Constitution that had come into effect in 1789.

Still today, the 3 May is commemorated as Constitution Day by the Polish community.

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