On August 18th, 1853, a buyer recorded only as “Capitaine Denny” paid 700 francs for a gold Breguet hunter pocket watch in Paris. More than 170 years later, Breguet No. 2226 has surfaced and is up for auction at Webb’s in Auckland. Its journey from the Quai de l’Horloge to New Zealand remains a mystery, and today, we’ll follow the clues in search of the man behind the name. Those two words have led me down a fascinating provenance trail.

Image: Webb’s

No. 2226 in the Breguet archive

Breguet’s archive is one of watchmaking’s great historical resources. The maison has preserved its sales registers since the 18th century, often recording the original owner, purchase price, and subsequent servicing. The entry for No. 2226 describes a gold hunting-case watch with case No. 1507, an enamel dial with small seconds at 6 o’clock, a gold cuvette, a lever escapement, and a compensated balance. However, the Breguet heritage team found no further information about the buyer.…