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发表于 2019-5-22 00:33:32
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History of Agassiz Watch Company:
The Agassiz Watch Company was established in 1876 by Georges Agassis, however it was Georges father, Auguste who first established a watch dealership that was the catalyst for the company to be set up.
The Agassiz Family is a family of Swiss origin, hailing from the small village of Agiez near Lake Neuchatel. The family has included a number of high profile members, such as the scientists Louis and Alexander Agassiz, as well as the founder of the Longines watch firm, Auguste Agassiz
Agassiz’s history is closely related to that of Longines. In 1832 Auguste Agassiz arrived in Saint-Imier Switzerland and entered the "Comptoir horloger Raiguel Jeune". The following year, in association with Florian Morel and Henri Raigue, he founded the "Comptoir Raiguel Jeune & Cie". When in 1838 Henri Raiguel retired, Auguste Agassiz and Florian Morel became the owners of the company, now renamed "Comptoir Agassiz & Cie", until in 1847 Agassiz became the sole owner. A few years later, in 1852, his nephew, Ernest Francillon, joined the company, succeeding his uncle in 1862. Thus, the new company "Ancienne Maison Auguste Agassiz, Ernest Francillon, Successeur" was born.
At that time, all the various components that comprised a watch were was produced by different craftsman throughout the region. Francillon recognized that this traditional production method resulted in quality control difficulties. He therefore decided to produce all the necessary components under one roof, and built a new factory at Les Longines in 1866.
This marked the beginning of Longines.
Auguste's son, Georges Agassiz, participated in the project to create the new factory. A year later he went to the United States to market Longines timepieces there. Upon his return, he assumed the role of financial and marketing manager at Longines, about ten years prior to him setting up alone and operating as the "Agassiz Watch Company". Do not be surprised if you happen to come across a watch with "Agassiz-Longines" on the face, as these were produced at times throughout the company's lifespan.
Then, in 1876, he founded the Agassiz Watch Co. to trade watches independently. To all appearances, however, links with the Longines company were never entirely severed. In fact, many watches had a double signature. His corporate mission was to finish and assemble movements of high value and quality as well as complete watches. In 1889 Agassiz was awarded a gold medal for its remarkably fine movements at the Paris World exhibition. In 1896, the rights to Agassiz fish logo passed to Auguste Sandoz of Saint-lmier. The award of the prestigious Gold Medal for its contribution to the world of horology confirmed Agassiz as a major world player in quality watch manufacture.
Always a man of high standards, Georges set up his company with a vision to create timepieces that would be world famous for their quality of manufacture and precision. Right from the start it was decided that they would make whole watches and not use cheap imported watch cases for any of their movements.
After twenty years behind the helm, he handed over the running of the business to Auguste Sandoz. This change led to a wider range of Agassiz watches being developed, with the use of precious stones and high quality jewelry work being done on cases and dials. Complicated movements were also developed and housed in ultra-thin cases, a major development for the time that made their watches more attractive, wearable and importantly kept the company visible to a worldwide watch buying public.
In the early to mid 1900s, the Company established a reputation as a supplier of high-grade repeater pocket watch movements, chronometers and great looking, almost military style watches. They also branched out into making clocks, with some fine 8-Day movements.
For the collector, Agassiz watches are very affordable, even though they appear to be quite rare when compared with some other watch brands.
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