1

A Day
Observed

A story presented by

Scene 1:
‘Morning’

It was a bright cold day with glassy surfaces that looked hard.
Into the square frame he stood as if in a dream.

What emerged was precisely what he expected to find: a reflection of memory images. Contemplating his face in the photo frame he waited.

1960s lucite and chrome 3 image photo frame

By the steady hands of his watch, he listened to time. Every day for the past sixteen days he saw her. Silver lingered in the crease of
an open book.

Rolex burlwood dial, Jubilee bracelet Miniature
oar English university trophy, sterling silver.

So absorbed in his thoughts
he hardly saw the platinum catch-all, the key, or the revelation locked inside those lapis lazuli cufflinks tossed unmistakably in cold blue.

Hans Hanson catch-all. Mid-century, Danish sterling silver. Stirrup money clip, by Hermès. Padlock keyring, sterling silver " Tie bar-slide " Round lapis lazuli cufflinks" Square cufflinks, two tone rose and yellow gold, diamond."

Only by whirling on his heel could he hope to comprehend
the panorama.

Shoe horn, circa 1930. American sterling silver
Scene 2:
‘Noon’

He remained.Trapped in that enormous room,
unmistakably familiar in feeling yet so peculiar.

Above the mantle was
displayed an Austrian hound
of impeccable integrity.

Hagenauer sculpture, 1930

His gaze fell on the letter opener. By accident she had learnt more about his life from the contents of that letter than anywhere.

Dunhill letter opener with lighter top, circa 1950

Cleopatra’s eye reflected
the sun. Through the hypnotism
of precious metals there
emerged a dark slender shadow.

Cleopatra’s eye magnifying glass. Mid-century, gold plated
Hermès weighted pen. Silver plated.

A lighter presented itself, smooth to the touch
it gave the impression of
intelligent company.

Table lighter St Dupont, circa 1960. Gold plate
Scene 3:
‘Evening’

All this time light was receding from the room.

“I should explain why I spend so much time here”, said the silhouette. Leaves moved like shadows across her eyes.

Hermès rope bottle opener. Plated silver.

It’s not too late to turn back. Time moved with faint sounds.

Venini hourglass. Hand-blown lurid Murano glass.

He unscrewed the telescopic cup, rolled and remained still. Black eyes on the dice prophesied a new cycle.

Telescopic cup, J. E. Cauldwell. Gold plated. Dice,
Cartier for America. Vitreous enamel glass, silver

Staring down at the varnished surface her mouth worried him while her eyes examined the gold cufflink.

Audemar Piguet evening watch. gold plated, Roman dial, alligator strap
Scene 4:
‘Night’

Everything went crashing black.

Pale graceful hands placed
the gold stud box delicately
on the table.

Men’s Edwardian jewellery box, 1910. Gold plated.
Mid-century British cigar ashtray. Sterling silver and crystal.

He lit a match to make sure the watch had really stopped. Smoke lingered from its vesta case.

Realist wrapped tobacco leaf march vesta. Silver.

As the travel clock neared
one the figure vanished into dappled shadows.

Art Deco Jaeger LeCoultre travel clock.
Gold and silver plated. Retailed by Aspray.

On the newly varnished table two bronze shot cups sat alive like in a dream.

Tooth shot cup by Foundwell. Bronze and silver plated.
Set of 4, 3 silver 1 gold. Heath & Midleton champagne decanters circa 1900.
Sterling silver and glass.
The End

‘A DAY OBSERVED’
A story by FOUNDWELL
Photography Matthieu Lavanchy, creative direction OK-RM,
notes by Kate O’Brien and objects selected by Alan Bedwell

‘A DAY OBSERVED’
A story by FOUNDWELL
Photography Matthieu Lavanchy,
creative direction OK-RM
notes by Kate O’Brien
and objects selected by Alan Bedwell

Early and Rare Sterling Silver Gorham Martini Mixing Bucket

Golf Cocktail Shaker
and Matching Golf Bag Cup

Sterling Silver Woven Bottle Coaster

Foundwell

A SELECTION OF ITEMS BY THE PRODUCER OF
CRAFTED GOODS & PURVEYOR OF ANTIQUE WATCHES,
JEWELLERY & OTHER SUCH OBJECTS

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A silver cased Tank Cintrée style watch. A very interesting, handsome and unusual unbranded Swiss made curved case, long and fine Tank model.  This particular example is not by any of the traditional names that one would expect to find from such a watch.  The case is a beautifully made curvex style that is long, but wraps smoothly and comfortably around the wrist.  The shaped dial extends all the way along the curve with a small frame surrounding it giving the overall appearance

The watch has a lot of the design elements that Cartier lovers covert, so it is easy to see why this watch is so appealing. The Roman numeral dial with black painted hands certainly exude a Cartier aesthetic. The beautiful. unsigned dial is in excellent condition with no signs of crazing or damage from moisture or dirt, as can often be the case with these watches that can suffer from not being very tightly sealed. The case shows no signs of polishing and is in excellent condition with original horizontally brushed sides and high polished front to the case.

The watch is powered by a manually wound, ETA produced, caliber 2412 movement. This is a fairly rudimentary, but reliable, movement that powered the vast number of Cartier watches from the mid 1980’s through to the early 1990’s, along with a number of other luxury watch houses such as Bueche Girod, with whom some attribute this watch to. We cannot confirm that it was made by this Swiss brand. From assessing other examples found they are all within this range of under one hundred examples made.  Inside the case is the Swiss mark for 800 of the Coq de Bruyére for 800 silver.  There is also a case maker's mark inside.  This has not been deciphered.

Overall, this is a wonderful take on the now iconic Cartier watch that trade for well into the six figure range. It is in superb original condition.  The case is strong, and is unpolished. This is the larger men's size.  Still not large in today's terms, as although it is on 18mm wide it is over 40mm in length.  It is also unusual to find silver cases.  If you are looking for a unique looking stylish play on the Tank, this is hard to beat for the money.


Price $3,495.00

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Item Dimensions
Case Width
0.708661 inches (1.79999894cm)
Case Length
1.69291 inches (4.2999914cm)