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Lot Essay
The inscription on the movement of the present watch suggests that it was presented by Boitel during the 1867 Universal Exhibition in Paris, introducing his combined Fahrenheit and Centigrade or Celsius indication, a major technical achievement.
According to Tardy's Dictionnaire des Horlogers Français, p. 65, the watchmaker H. Boitel of Paris and Besançon patented several improvements in 1857 and exhibited an astronomical meter in 1867.
What can be considered the first modern thermometer, the mercury thermometer with a standardized scale, was invented by Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686-1736) in 1714. The Fahrenheit scale divided the freezing and boiling points of water into 180 degrees. 32F was the freezing point of water and 212F was its boiling point. 0F was based on the temperature of an equal mixture of water, ice, and salt. Daniel Fahrenheit based his temperature scale on the temperature of the human body. Originally, the human body temperature was 100 F on the Fahrenheit scale, but it has since been adjusted to 98.6F.
Celsius, also known as centigrade, is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius (1701-1744), who developed a similar temperature scale. The degree Celsius can refer to a specific temperature on the Celsius scale as well as a unit to indicate a temperature interval, a difference between two temperatures or an uncertainty. The unit was known until 1948 as "centigrade" from the Latin centum translated as 100 and gradus translated as "steps".
The International Exposition of 1867, called "exposition universelle [d'art et d'industrie] de 1867" in French, was the second world fair to be held in Paris, from 1 April to 3 November 1867, 42 nations were represented. Following a decree of Emperor Napoleon III, the exposition was prepared as early as 1864, in the midst of the renovation of Paris, marking the culmination of the Second French Empire.
According to Tardy's Dictionnaire des Horlogers Français, p. 65, the watchmaker H. Boitel of Paris and Besançon patented several improvements in 1857 and exhibited an astronomical meter in 1867.
What can be considered the first modern thermometer, the mercury thermometer with a standardized scale, was invented by Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686-1736) in 1714. The Fahrenheit scale divided the freezing and boiling points of water into 180 degrees. 32F was the freezing point of water and 212F was its boiling point. 0F was based on the temperature of an equal mixture of water, ice, and salt. Daniel Fahrenheit based his temperature scale on the temperature of the human body. Originally, the human body temperature was 100 F on the Fahrenheit scale, but it has since been adjusted to 98.6F.
Celsius, also known as centigrade, is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius (1701-1744), who developed a similar temperature scale. The degree Celsius can refer to a specific temperature on the Celsius scale as well as a unit to indicate a temperature interval, a difference between two temperatures or an uncertainty. The unit was known until 1948 as "centigrade" from the Latin centum translated as 100 and gradus translated as "steps".
The International Exposition of 1867, called "exposition universelle [d'art et d'industrie] de 1867" in French, was the second world fair to be held in Paris, from 1 April to 3 November 1867, 42 nations were represented. Following a decree of Emperor Napoleon III, the exposition was prepared as early as 1864, in the midst of the renovation of Paris, marking the culmination of the Second French Empire.