Roy & Henri Roy parquet clocks, between 1840-1870

Since the mid-1970s, I have searched and browsed for clocks and pocket watches produced by my four-great-grandfather Abraham-Henry Roy and my great-great-grandfather Henri Roy, because in my family branch, the war had scattered what was left of Roy's clocks and watches...

I even investigated very seriously when I was working as a financial analyst (yes!) in a bank in Normandy, in the early 1980s, when I was a young graduate. Impossible to find one to buy ! There were only monumental clocks at the top of church and town hall towers... but sometimes a rare parquet clock appeared, signed Roy or H. Roy or Henri Roy, which was not for sale. I had even found one in a hotel in Caen, as welle as one, owned by the parents of a brother-in-law of mine by marriage ...

Here are pictures, taken at the Fréret-Roy shop, of our first parquet clocks signed Roy in Ste Austreberte around 1820 and Henri Roy in Ste Austreberte around 1850. At that time, Ste Austreberthe was written without an "h" after the "t".  We acquired these clocks a few years ago for our "small museum".

Henri Roy pocket watches, between 1830-1860

Here are the first Henri Roy pocket watches that I found ...

As I wrote above, since the mid-1970s, I have been searching and hunting for pocket watches produced by my great-great-grandfather Henri Roy... which were until recently impossible to find... but by chance, I ended up finding two specimens!

The first is signed and in poor condition, I will see if it is possible to "improve" it a little and find a compatible case for it, which should not be too difficult.

The dial of the second one is not signed, but I bought it at the same time. It must have been out of sight for a long time, as it is almost new and works perfectly. The movements are identical, keywound. I date them approximately from 1830/1860. I will continue to search other specimens, especially in Normandy, cradle of the family and of the manufacture... I found these watches totally by chance, without looking for them, on ebay! The history goes on.

And for the record, if we blame the brands that equip their watches with ETA movements of all ills, it is clear that, in the past, most watch manufacturers were assembling, buying their cases or having them manufactured, buying their dials and customizing them, buying their movements... And assembling the whole thing... Nothing really changes.

In 2011, the family tradition in wristwatch making is reborn under the name Fréret Roy 1818
This unusual and offbeat portrait of Michel Fréret-Roy has become the signature of the Fréret Roy 1818 brand.

First A.O.C. collection of 2011

First edition of the  Coeur Ouvert® Nouvelle Vague V1

The first A.O.C. collection of our brand included about ten models presented in the slideshow below. The models are out of stock, but we will soon relaunch a model Coeur Ouvert® Classique 38mm, unisexe but especially dedicated to women, and that we already present in the current collection of our watches, page "Fréret Roy 1818".

Here are some photos of the first collection, now sold out, posted on our Facebook page at the time:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.306475882727783&type=3