https://thevintageur.com/it/wristory/the-great-history-of-juvenia-part-i-1860-1940/
SPECIFICATIONS
Extraordinary Juvenia pendant necklace “Lotus” with case in 925 gold-plated silver and external coating in decorated enamel, manual winding movement Felsa 21 From 60s.
Globular case in 925 gold-plated silver measuring 17mm
Red external enamel with guilloché work underneath
Weight 22 gr.
Original crown
Manual winding movement Felsa cal.21
ANALYSIS
Between the 18th and 19th centuries, spherical necklace watches (or pendent watches) in enamel represented the height of elegance and horological miniaturization. Much later, this trend developed between the 1940s and 1960s in particular between France and Switzerland, where upper-middle-class women loved to show off necklaces of all shapes and colors, and fueled the market for pendant watches.
This exceptional Juvenia “Lotus” comes from the last breaths of the “Grande Bellezza” produced in that last period before the advent of quartz strangled Swiss watchmaking creativity.
The dial has a white background with circular dots and golden mirror numbers. In the center at 12 o’clock is the Juvenia signature. The hands are golden in the shape of a pencil. The pendant has a globular shape reminiscent of a lotus flower, from which the dial seems to bloom, appearing wrapped in six petals.
The 925 gold-plated silver case is truly a masterpiece. It has a bulging shape divided into two sections. On the outside, you can see a very refined guiocché workmanship: red enamel is placed on top of it, making the composition shimmer and transparent in its beautiful burgundy and bright red reflections. This coating is further enhanced by small golden dots, which look like dewdrops clinging to the petals.
This extraordinary patented case comes from the laboratories of the important Berthoud & Cie. SA manufacture active in Bienne since 1931 (trademark “B&C”). Inside it is the Juvenia signature, the serial number, the Swiss symbol for 0.925 silver (the duck) and the Didisheim-Goldschmidt Fils & Cie. / Juvenia trademark (“DG”). A true masterpiece of craftsmanship, manufacturing expertise and creativity.
Inside there is another excellence: the Felsa 21 caliber produced since 1960. It measures only 13.7mm and is just over 3mm thin. It has 17 jewels and is embellished with a bezel screwed onto the escapement wheel jewel. The caliber is mounted at the base of the case which is very high and to reach the plane where the dial is located, the casemakers added a cylindrical module inside which passed the very elongated axis that reaches up to the hands on the opposite side. Another incredible technical solution that makes this object even more special.
