Watch with the Adoration of the Shepherds c. 1750 - 1775

Jan Marc Juntès, a watchmaker working in Switzerland, crafted this gold pocket watch around 1760. At this time, Geneva was a center for watchmaking, an industry closely tied to the city’s history as a Protestant republic, because the making and selling of jewelry was outlawed. Although this watch bears an image related to the Catholic religion, the Adoration of the Shepherds, this was a common subject found in the Swiss watch trade. In fact, the luxury watch industry had become so entwined with the local economy that watchmakers became some of the most politically enfranchised people in Geneva. Many were also members of the city’s governing council. Objects like this one are especially interesting to historians because they tell us about the nuances of cultural and political life. They reveal how economic conditions and local politics can impact art and industry. To further investigate this, you could look into the history of watchmaking in Switzerland and Geneva’s unique political past.