Woodard Lipe
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St. Louis Contemporary and Classic: The May Collection

Sat, May 9, 2026 11:00AM EDT
  2026-05-09 11:00:00 2026-05-09 11:00:00 America/New_York Woodard Lipe Woodard Lipe : St. Louis Contemporary and Classic: The May Collection https://bid.woodardlipe.com/auctions/woodard-lipe/st-louis-contemporary-and-classic-the-may-collection-23090
St. Louis Classic and Contemporary: the May Collection is a carefully curated auction presenting an exceptional breadth of fine art, works on paper, decorative arts and collectibles spanning multiple collecting disciplines, with highlights including works by Robert Motherwell, Willem de Koonig, Marc Chagall, Hans Bellmer, Sol LeWitt, Leslie Dill, Alexander Calder, Laszlo Dus, Ed Eugene Boccia and Siegfried Reinhardt alongside important American and European decorative arts.
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Lot 140

LE COULTRE (Swiss, Jaeger-LeCoultre), Atmos Perpetual Clock, gold plated brass and glass, calibre 528, mid 20th century

Estimate: $800 - $1,600
Starting Bid
$400

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
$100,000 $10,000
Height 9.25 in., Width 7.5 in., Depth 5.5 in. This Atmos perpetual clock by Le Coultre -- the iconic Swiss maison known today as Jaeger-LeCoultre -- is housed in the classic rectangular gold plated brass and glass case with four corner column supports, the white chapter ring dial signed Le Coultre with Arabic quarter numerals at 3, 6, 9 and 12, gold baton hour markers, gold dagger hands and an open central aperture revealing the gilded movement and gear train beneath. The Atmos, first invented by Jean-Leon Reutter in 1928 and produced by Jaeger-LeCoultre from 1935, is among the most ingenious timepieces ever created -- powered entirely by minute changes in atmospheric temperature and pressure acting on a sealed ethylene chloride capsule, requiring no winding, no battery and theoretically capable of running indefinitely without human intervention. The Le Coultre signature on the dial rather than the full Jaeger-LeCoultre name suggests this is an earlier production example, likely from the 1950s to mid 1960s, a period during which both names appeared on Atmos dials. The movement should be examined for the serial number which will allow precise dating -- the clock appears to be running and in very good overall condition with the gold plating bright and the glass panels clean and undamaged. The Swiss government presents the Atmos as its official diplomatic gift to foreign heads of state, a distinction that underscores the enduring prestige of this remarkable timepiece.

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