STUNNING LARGE & RARE 18K SOLID GOLD 19JEWEL UNITED STATES WATCH CO POCKET WATCH

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STUNNING LARGE & RARE 18K SOLID GOLD 19JEWEL UNITED STATES WATCH CO POCKET WATCH:
$5500.00

AMAZING RARE 18K SOLID GOLD 19 JEWEL UNITED STATES WATCH CO & GRADE POCKET WATCH
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Click to view supersized imageClick to view supersized imageYou are offerding on an extremely rare United States (Marion) Watch Company pocket watch that was made around the 1870\'s. This piece is the holy grail of USWCo pieces as this is a 19 Jewel United States Watch Company grade piece in Gilt! This piece was incredibly the 7th one ever made in this highest grade and was manufactured in the first short run of 20 USWCo grade pieces! To explain the rarity of this watch even further, there were only 20 pieces made in total of the Gilt plate USWCo grade, these are extremely hard to find. With only 20 made this does make this watch much rarer than any Nickel USWCo Grade piece made as there were a couple of runs of the 19J Nickel USWCo grade pieces.

The nickel USWCo grade pieces are very sought after and scarce in any jewelling especially the 19 Jewel version with the nickel 19J pieces being rated at 3 stars. Though this gilt first run piece is a 5 star rating if using the pocket watch price guide rating and this gilt version is not actually detailed in the price guide book as you can see as there is no gilt version listed which is unfortunate but not uncommon in the price guide with many variants not listed from many watch companies. Since the book values that you do see in the price guide also do not separate the Nickel and Gilt pieces and their different rarity it becomes quite hard to value this piece but you can understand that these gilt pieces are going to be much more expensive than the nickel price guide values. I have seen one of these sell over $12000 and with no box. This is a true 5 star rarity piece and as mentioned the most rare and sought after piece from the United States Watch Company. These USWCo grade 19J watches also hold the record and additional sought after collectability for being the most expensive American watch for sale at that period of time in the 1870’s, they were priced around the $450 to $500 range which is a phenomenal price for that time period and of which only the very rich could afford.

That explains the high grade part of this watch and the extreme rarity of the movement, this watch however also tells another story of how this piece was uniquely cased and what market it was intended for. As you can see this case has been specifically cased in an English style 18k Demi Hunter case intended for sale and use in the English market/British Federation countries. The watch does come with its original English retailers box labelled for high end Watchmaker David Glasgow. The watch perfectly fits this box and the pocket watch recess in the box has specific matching wear consistent in it from the pin set protruding out and the special chain guard bow on this case. I do see this watch as original to the watch box due to these signs and perfect fitment and wear in the exact areas where there should be.

It is extremely rare in its own right to find a USWCo piece in an English case however there has been many some high end American pocket watches located in England and cased to suit their market, though usually these are Walthams. I have found and seen a few American Grade Walthams in the UK in English demi hunter cases. The exciting fact about this watch is that there is no other screw marks on this 18k demi hunter case so this case is original to the movement. I did purchase this watch direct from England so it is definitely made for this British market. The dust cover is marked Montreal 1882 which is quite an interesting part of this watches story which is unknown, with Montreal being in Canada and part of the British Federation it makes sense for how this watch relates. I am not sure the exact history of this piece but it is very intriguing and worthy of some serious research of how it came to be marketed by David and then sold and also to have a Montreal link.

I have performed some basic research on David Glasgow, he was not only a high end watchmaker but was the Vice President of the British Horological Institute in London and wrote many articles and some books on matchmaking and watches in general. David also made many comments on the English, Swiss and American watch making processes. David was critical of the mass produced ‘machine made’ American Watches though this was believed to be due to the English not being able to compete with the American watches and English watches not selling well and losing market share. David specially authored the important book of 1885 entitled Watch and Clock Making.

My thoughts on the early history of this watch: This piece being in its original demi hunter case from David Glasgow who was critical of American watches and the time period of the 1870’s/80’s when the English watch industry was struggling makes me believe that this piece was purchased from USWCo by David Glasgow to obtain the movement for study and possible discussion at the BHI in order for the British watchmakers to work out how they can learn and compete with the American watches. I believe with this piece being the most expensive and seen as the best watch available for sale in America at the time it was of high interest to David and the BHI. Why else would David Glasgow who was critical of American watches buy what is seen as the best watch in the market in the 1870’s. I believe the watch was held and studied then at some point cased to suit the British market and sold on in the 1880’s due to the watch inscription.

The Montreal 1882 inscription does seem like it stands for an event or situation that occurred. I have performed some basic research on Montreal in 1882 to see what was making news around then and interestingly enough there were many important Railroad Business Deals being struck in Montreal in 1882 with the creation and selling of various railroads. Was this watch purchased to signify/gifted due to a large British/Canadian Railroad business deal by and British business owner? Canada was part of the British Federation so this is plausible. This watch requires much more research into it to discover any more details about it as it is certainly unusual and rare in what it represents.Other notes found from online sources about David: David W. Glasgow was apprenticed to J.R Losada and made watches for the Spanish and Central American markets. He served as vice president of the BHI where he vigorously defended the \"English\" method of manufacture against the foreign upstarts. A detailed article from his obituary in the Horological Journal, January 1912 tells of a case in 1882 where Glasgow so vehemently criticized the American Watch Company, who were participating in the Melbourne Exhibition, that they in turn issued a writ for libel claiming against David Glasgow for £2000 damages.

You can see why this watch is important and unique to find an American watch cased and sold by David as he was not supportive of American manufacturers and represented the British Horological community. I think this watch is a key piece of evidence to show how the British were inspecting and trying to compete with American ingenuity and manufacturing.
References to David Glasgow’s book on Watch and clock Making and other discussion and
Watch features: The case is a very large and heavy 18kt solid gold case that is engine turned and weighs 147 grams. The case is a demi hunter and has all black enamel intact on the front cover which is great. Overall the case is in very good condition. It has seen use over the last 140 years and some of the engine turning has worn smooth. The case has no major scratches, it does have micro-fine scratches from normal use and handling over the last 140 years. There are no dents on the case which is great. As you can see the case has the button set on the side of the case, the button still has its spring there and works well, you do need to hold the button down to engage the hands to set the time.

The case is original to this movement as there are no other screw marks on the case movement rim. The bow ring is still extremely tight which is excellent. All the case lids open and close well. The front case lid opens to just around 85 degrees. The back case lid opens to around 90 degrees. All hinges are nice and tight which is great. There are no gaps showing when all the case lids are closed. The bow also has the extra touch of a chain guard which is also a nice fancy feature. With gold being around US$1250 for an ounce (31 grams) that makes this case have a very high value just in gold value.

The watch has high very grade features for the time of manufacture such as solid gold screwed down jewel settings and the cap settings are solid gold as well. The balance has solid gold balance screws as well. The gilt plates are in great condition with excellent shine. The extra fancy engraving is just wonderful and all you would expect on this grade. The plates have the expected butterfly cut-out with Giles Patent MCH 13th 66 engraved. The movement has the cap jewels on the pallet pinion and the escape wheel pinion making it 19 Jewels. The serial number of the movement is 12007.

The double sunk dial on this watch is in good condition and correct being double sunk. The dial is very clean and has no chips and only one hairline limited to the centre section of the dial. The watch hands are in good condition and fitted with fancy English fancy fleur de lis hands. The crystal is glass and is in mint condition.

The watch is stem wound and button set though you should be able to key wind and key set this watch as well as the arbours are there for that purpose. The hands set well and the watch currently runs.

This watch with all of its unique and rare features is one of the rarest Unites States (Marion) Watch Company grade watch in existence. This piece also tells another story about the English and American market and is unique also from that aspect. You will need to wait a long time for another one to come up for sale in this grade and this unique.

Overall Condition: VERY GOOD

Please use the pictures in place of my description as they tell you more details about the watch than I ever can through words.

The successful winner must contact me within 24 hours of winning the sale otherwise I reserve the right to offer the item to the second highest buyer. Payment should be made within 7 days of the sale ending otherwise the item will be re-listed.

I only accept payment via paypal for all international payments. If you are an Australian resident I would prefer payment via paypal or a direct bank deposit. Please contact me after the sale for bank details if you require them.

I require that all purchasers to have shipping insurance to the full value of the item on all packages. Here are the shipping costs:

Within Australia by Registered Mail US$10.00 (includes AU$100 insurance value, more insurance cover costs US$1 for each AU$100 of extra insurance value, there is a limit of AU$5000.

Worldwide by Air Mail Insured US$25.00 Approximately 10 Business Days Delivery Time (includes AU$100 insurance value, more insurance cover costs US$2 for each AU$100 of extra insurance value, there is a limit of US$1700 I can insure up to on international shipments. There is no online tracking on this option (except in the US) however it can be tracked down through the mail system manually).

Please remember that any customs costs are the responsibility of the purchaser. Thank-You.

The watches I sell are Antique or Vintage therefore they do not come with a warranty. I would recommend that the winning buyer have the watch serviced as I do not guarantee how long a watch will work for or how well it keeps time.All sales are final and no returns will be accepted.

If I have considerably misrepresented the details of a watch, consideration will be taken to refund the money to the winner in return for the watch, minus the shipping fees. You must contact me within two weeks of the sale ending if you believe the watch was considerably misrepresented otherwise the sale is final after this time period.

When the payment for an item has been received and clears, I will then ship the item. I cannot not be held liable for any lost or damaged goods in the mail. Watches can only be insured up to US$1700 internationally so I cannot be held responsible for any shortfall in insurance claims as I am limited to what the shipping companies can provide for insured services.

Hi and thanks for looking at our watches....

My husband andI have been avid admirers of Antique jewellery for many years and have a special passion for Antique Pocket Watches. We began seriously collecting and trading Antique Watches about 9 years ago and are members of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors (N.A.W.C.C.). We trade watches full time so we take our business seriously. Our aim is to provide honest and accurate information about the pieces we sell.

Some say we have caught \'The Watch Fever\' and if you are an admirer like us, you will understand our addiction to these unique and spectacular pieces of history. In today\'s world of mass production, it is truly wonderful to own a unique collectable with intricate artisanship with which these watches were crafted. Every single watch deserves pride of place in someone\'s collection.

We really want you to be happy with what you buy and have an overall great experience. We buy, sell and trade our watches with integrity and are proud of our very high response rating. Whether you are a seasoned horologist or just beginning your collection, I hope you enjoy looking at the watches we have for sale.

If you require any more photos or some more close ups of a certain feature of the watch please let me know. Please feel free to ask me any questions about the watch.

We are proud of our HIGH response rating. PLEASE contact us first if you have a problem, so we can correct it. You can contact us via the email \'Email this Seller\' Link at the top of the page. Thanks for looking and good luck.

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