Le Quai de l'Horloge

Opening of the workshop on the Île de la Cité

Abraham-Louis Breguet set up his own business in 1775, as he himself confirmed on several occasions. This must have closely coincided with the date of his wedding, since among artisans, the wife’s dowry was generally used for the investments inherent in setting up a business. 

Already a Parisian through his established habits and having officially become one by marriage, Breguet settled with his wife on the Île de la Cité near the Pont-Neuf, in a house where he began renting the upper floor located under the rafters. Belonging at the time to the de Polignac family, this imposing building was located on Quai de l’Horloge, now at number 39.. The river quayside stretch depicted in numerous engravings of Paris was also known as the Quai de l’Horloge du Palais or the Quai des Morfondus, and its dwellings date back to the early 17th century. 

Featuring a rear façade overlooking the Place de Thionville (now the Place Dauphine), it was known to locals as la maison du Quai. This western part of the Île de la Cité had long been the cosmopolitan district of watchmakers and makers of precision equipment. Breguet knew every one of its alleys and porchways. Berthoud and Lépine also had their workshops here, one on Rue du Harlay and the other on Place Dauphine.