Astin18K Rose Gold, Two-Tone Salmon Dial
$800
An 18K rose gold square-cased dress watch with a two-tone salmon dial, circa 1940s-1950s. Houses a Cal. 006 manual-wind movement with 15 jewels. Compagnie des Montres Astin was a La Chaux-de-Fonds manufacturer known for its chronographs under Andre Bozonnat (1936-1944) before being absorbed by the Schwarz-Etienne family. From the collection of a Parisian private collector.
Specifications
- Era
- 1940s
- Case Material
- Rose Gold
- Case Diameter
- 24.0mm
- Movement
- Manual
- Caliber
- Cal. 006, 15 jewels
- Condition
- Good
- Box & Papers
- none
Dial
Two-tone pink salmon, signed Astin. Arabic and baton indices with leaf hands.
Condition Notes
Dial has light dust and minor surface marks consistent with age. Hands show slight patina. Crystal has light scratches. Case has light wear throughout. Movement runs when wound. Strap is associated (not original).
Provenance
Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, Paris, April 2026 (Lot 30, 'Property of a Noble Collector Part 1'). Case serial No. 3101.
Compagnie des Montres Astin S.A. was founded in La Chaux-de-Fonds in January 1926 by Gaston Cattin of Le Noirmont. After surviving a Depression-era bankruptcy in 1931, the company was taken over in 1936 by Andre Bozonnat, a merchant from Le Locle who pivoted the firm toward chronograph production. Under Bozonnat, Astin relocated to the Palais Invar at Avenue Leopold-Robert 94, the same building that housed Schwarz-Etienne's operations, and grew rapidly through the late 1930s and early 1940s.
In May 1944, the Schwarz family formally acquired Astin, adding it to a portfolio that already included Alpha, Sultana, and Le Phare. The chronograph specialization was abandoned and Astin became a generalist brand producing dress watches and simple complications. This square-cased example in 18K rose gold, with its two-tone salmon dial and Cal. 006 movement, dates from the transition between the Bozonnat era and the Schwarz years. The company was dissolved in 1969.
From the collection of a Parisian private collector, sold at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, Paris, April 2026 (Lot 30, "Property of a Noble Collector Part 1"). Case serial No. 3101.
