Founded in 1835 by Jeane-Pierre Gay and Gaspard Tissot, Gay Frères was a Geneva based firm known for their watch bracelets, pocket watch chains, and jewelry. They earned their reputation for their high-quality pieces, soon producing bracelets in different metals for Rolex. Notably, the firm was one of the first workshops to successfully design with stainless steel. Many important watch brands followed suit, and by the 1940s Gay Frères was making inventive designs for Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin, and later Omega, Jaeger LeCoultre, and Audemars Piguet. The firm is behind many iconic watch bracelets, including the Rolex Oyster, the AP Royal Oak bracelet, and the ‘Beads-of-Rice’ bracelet. Alongside watch elements, the firm designed and made exquisite jewelry under their own name and for several elite jewelry houses, such as Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels. Their 60s and 70s pieces remain particularly collectible to this day. In 1998 Gay Frères was acquired by Rolex, and in 2010 the firm became a certified member of France’s Responsible Jewellery Council.

Overall Condition: Light scratching throughout consistent with age and use.

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