Bovet Chinese Market Pocket Watch

Inventory Number: PW1809029

Made in Switzerland circa 1870, 39mm, silver open-face case. Signed Bovet on the caliber. Made for the Chinese market, a simple model with decorated Chinese caliber to target the civil market.

About Bovet

Bovet Fleurier SA is a Swiss brand of luxury watchmaker registered on May 1, 1822, in London, the U.K. by Édouard Bovet for manufacturing watches exclusively for the Chinese market. It is most noted for its pocket watches manufactured for the Chinese market in the 19th century. In 1823(the 3rd year of Dao Guang Emperor), the Bovet brothers established the company in Canton, China, soon they were traveling between Canton and Macau for business. It was about this time that the company created a Chinese name to market to the middle class more effectively. The Chinese name for Bovet, "Bo Wei", became a common noun for watches in China for many years. Now they still produce high-end artistic watches.

The Chinese market pocket watch is the pocket watch that specially made for the Chinese market in the 18th to 19th centuries by European watchmakers. It was originally used as a tribute to the Qing Dynasty royal family and spread among the public gradually. Many cases were generally made of silver, brass, gilt brass or silver, and decorated with painted enamel with pearls or precious jewels.

The movements are so-called “Chinese Caliber”, and many of them were engraved with beautiful patterns such as scrolled flowers and foliage, the designs were significantly recognizable. From the Chinese collectors ‘view, these kinds of pocket watches are called "The big-eight pieces”. (There is such a statement that the movement was usually designed to consist of a barrel and seven main components, eight pieces in total, and “eight" is considered as the homonym of "fortune" in Chinese, so they were gradually known as "The big-eight pieces" from the 19th century in Chinese.