Hamilton "Sample 85" Grade 980 Movement, René Rondeau Collection. ...

Description

Hamilton "Sample 85" Grade 980 Movement, René Rondeau Collection
Movement: rhodium finish, gold lettering, marked "Sample 85", grade 980

Note: Three sample movements marked as numbers 80, 83 and 85 were acquired by René Rondeau from the famous Dr. Robert Ravel hoard in 1990. In his own words Mr. Rondeau states: "However we all owe a particularly large debt to the late Dr. Robert Ravel for preserving much of Hamilton's legacy. Bob was an eccentric in the very best sense of the term, and I considered him a very close and endlessly fascinating friend. (I dedicated the Collectors' Guide to him). He was a curmudgeon, and proud of it. He was also a brilliant cancer specialist and a fanatic collector, particularly of military horology. In 1971, as Hamilton was slipping into its darkest period just prior to being sold to a Swiss company, Bob Ravel bought the entire contents of the Hamilton research lab, production offices, advertising department, and much more".







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