Arthur Rubinstein, probably the most distinguished pianist of our century, frequently visited the Breguet shop when passing through Paris. He owned a small collection of Breguets. The watch no 1682 with date and thermometer that he wore was exceptional on account of its extremely rare oval shape. It has a curious history: in fact, the case was manufactured by Breguet in 1822 for a Russian aristocrat, Count Panin; at the time it was an 'imitation watch', in other words a case intended simply to hold a portrait. Then, much later in 1884, the case returned to Breguet and the company was commissioned to fit a movement, thereby giving the watch its present configuration.