By rights, the pocket watch should have been killed off a century ago, when it became clear that shrinking a timepiece and strapping it to the wrist made life a lot more convenient.
Yet, as the decades have passed and wristwatches have become more refined, more complicated and more wondrous in terms of function, materials and design, it is the pocket watch that remains the quiet king of portable horology.
If you’re struggling to recall the last time you observed a Dickensian-looking fellow digging two fingers into his waistcoat before withdrawing a half-hunter suspended from a gold chain, you may not believe a market for pocket watches exists at all.
But exist it does, and in not one but four different areas.
First, there are the collectable, vintage pocket watches bursting with complications that were once the ultimate portable status symbol of the rich. The most celebrated is the 1933 Henry Graves Supercomplication Patek Philippe which was sold by Sotheby’s in 1999 for a staggering $11m, making it the most expensive watch ever auctioned.
The set comprises one watch in each of the three colours of gold and a fourth one in platinum. Each weighs more than a pound
Then there are the modern-day versions of such pieces. These are made in small numbers with huge price tags for contemporary collectors willing to pay whatever it takes to own an example of micro-engineering that can comprise hundreds of hand-finished parts and feature a multiplicity of complications.
Perhaps the most notable example of these is Patek Philippe’s Star Calibre, which was conceived six years ago to mark the new millenium. The fourth of five sets of four watches, which will constitute the entire production, is currently being finished prior to delivery to a buyer who has paid £6.3m for the privilege of ownership.
The set comprises one watch in each of the three colours of gold and a fourth one in platinum. Each boasts 21 functions, contains 1,118 components, measures 55.4mm in diameter and weighs more than a pound.
Thirdly, are the affordable, modern-day pocket watches which eschew complications in favour of simple elegance, pieces such as Chaumet’s delightful, sub £1,500 Dandy. Despite being about the simplest watch one could imagine, it makes a bold statement when casually withdrawn from a waistcoat pocket.
Finally, and perhaps most interestingly, come the thousands of simple or only mildly complicated pocket watches that turn up each year at auction and usually sell for extraordinarily small sums of money.
It is not unusual for a simple, vintage pocket watch made by a prestige name such as Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin or A Lange and Söhne to appear at auction with a sub-£2,000 estimate, when a comparable wristwatch by the same maker might easily command four or five times as much.
“There are several reasons why simple pocket watches can be so affordable at auction,” explains Paul Maudsley of Bonhams in London.
“The first, of course, is that few people actually use them. We have, perhaps, only four or five regular buyers who bid for pieces that they intend to wear.
“They are also good value simply because there are so many available. When new, they were regarded as objects of value and were therefore looked after and handed down through families.
The English-made pieces are often of better quality than the Swiss ones, but there are many beautifully made Swiss pocket watches which sell for comparatively little because they are unsigned and cannot be attributed to a particular maker.”
Richard Lofthouse, who works for CNBC Europe, is one of a growing number of people to recognise the bargain potential of vintage pocket watches. He recently left Christie’s New York saleroom with a mint condition, rose gold Patek Philippe dating from 1877 which he picked up for just £2,700.
He says: “The decision to buy stemmed from a discussion about my grandfather’s pocket watch which has been passed down through the family.
“We thought it would be nice to invest in another pocket watch to hand on to the next generation, and the original intention was to buy a modern one and have it engraved.
“However, we eventually decided that it was more sensible to go for a vintage piece with enduring value, particularly having discovered that they can be such bargains,” says Lofthouse.
Part of the appeal of any pocket watch, however – whether it costs a few hundred pounds or a few hundred thousand – is that the format is unmatched as a platform on which to display the watchmaker’s craft.
It is for this reason that brands including IWC, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, A Lange and Söhne, Breguet, Blancpain and, of course, Patek Philippe, still maintain teams of watchmakers dedicated to the production of these seemingly defunct timepieces.
An exhibition featuring the 27 pocket watches created by George Daniels, considered by many to be the world’s greatest living watchmaker, will be held at Sotheby’s, 34 New Bond Street, London W1 from July 18 to 21 and on July 23.
For opening hours, call 020 7293 5000.
