July, 1 9 10 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



275 



The Finest Collection of Antique Watches in the World 



Bought by J. Pierpont Morgan 



By Charles A. Brassier 



• HE most famous collection of artistic an- 

 tique watches in the world has been ac- 

 quired recently by Mr. J. Pierpont 

 Morgan, and will be added to the unique 

 collections of costly art objects upon 

 which the discriminating American mil- 

 lionaire may justly pride himself. Last 



ions of this watch are made so small as to be almost invis- 

 ible to the naked eye. 



Some time ago Mr. Marfels patriotically offered the col- 

 lection to the Prussian government, at a price considerably 

 below that paid for it by Mr. Morgan, to prevent its going 

 out of that country. His offer was not accepted and the 

 peerless collection is now forever lost to Germany. It is 



year a portion of the collection, comprising about forty to be hoped that in some museum the American public will 

 remarkable watches, was sold to Mr. Morgan through the be afforded an opportunity of inspecting this collection, 

 agency of Seeligman, the dealer in antiques, for $150,000, from which, possibly, the American watchmaker, and espe- 



whereas the rest of 

 the costly Marfels 

 collection, unique in 

 the whole world, 

 remained in the 

 possession of the 

 collector, who had 

 rummaged G e r - 

 many, France and 

 all Europe to find 

 them and expended 

 a fortune in their 

 acquisition. When 

 Mr. Morgan re- 

 cently paid a visit 

 to Rome, he met 

 Mr. Marfels, and 

 as a result of the 

 interview, the re- 

 mainder of the col- 

 lection, forty more 

 rare watches, the 

 admiration of every 

 connoisseur and 

 every one a master- 

 piece of the en- 

 graver's and enamel 

 painter's arts was 

 transferred to the 

 American million- 

 aire, for $225,000, 

 making the total 

 price of this un- 

 equaled collection, 

 $375,000. Among 

 the specimens he 

 acquired is a su- 

 p e r b 1 y decorated 

 Limoges watch, also 

 some exceptionally 

 large Louis XIII 

 enameled watches, 

 having on the cases wonderful pictorial representations of 

 scenes from biblical and ancient Roman history. They are, 

 to-day, all the more valuable because the technical processes 

 of their production are supposed to be lost and apparently, 

 in spite of every experiment and effort, cannot be re-discovered. 

 In addition to some conspicuously beautiful watches in 

 egg and crucifix form, there may be mentioned the smallest 

 watch in the world, having a diameter of but nine milli- 

 meters — five-sixteenths of an inch. The wheels and pin- 



1 — Gold enameled watch. 17 Century. Z — Gold enamel watch, 17 Century, i — Gold enamel watch. 16 Century. 4 -Kgg watch tinel>- en- 

 graved. 16 Century. 5 — Gold enameled watch, Louis XIII. 6 — Gold enameled watch, 17 Century. 7 — Costly Gold enameled watch, 17 Century. 



cially the artist and 

 craftsman, may de- 

 r i V e inspirations 

 that will result in 

 the watch being re- 

 stored to the place 

 it once held as an 

 article of personal 

 adornment, instead 

 of being hidden 

 away In the pocket. 

 At the same time, 

 admiration will be 

 aroused for their 

 artistic perfection, 

 for among the 

 specimens are in- 

 cluded only hand- 

 some pieces of 

 the highest artistic 

 value, carefully se- 

 lected, with rare 

 discrimination b v 

 Mr. Marfels from 

 the thousands of 

 antique specimens 

 submitted to him. 

 Just here the pro- 

 cess of selection by 

 which such a rare 

 and beautiful as- 

 semblage of ancient 

 time pieces was ac- 

 cumulated becomes 

 of significance, and 

 it will doubtless in- 

 terest many of our 

 readers to learn 

 something of the 

 motives that led the 

 collector to embark 

 on so costly and so 

 difficult an undertaking. The entry of Mr. Marfels into 

 the field as a collector of antique watches was due to the 

 merest accident. He was at the time the traveling repre- 

 sentative of a well-known firm dealing in watch materials, 

 and a friend, knowing that he constantly came in contact 

 with watchmakers in all parts of the country, suggested that 

 if he came across anything curious or meritorious in the 

 shape of an antique watch, he would be pleased to have him 

 purchase it on his account. Becoming known through this 



