Pocket watch find

[cudamark]

Well, not exactly a today's find, but, I just took it out of a week's soaking in Evaporust today. I found it at a fairly old location and would like to get more info from you watch and handwriting experts out there. I don't see any maker's name anywhere, but, I do see some serial? numbers. There is one on the mechanism and one of the inner flap, and they match. It looks to be silver plated copper near as I can tell. Nothing but rust on the face side, and there is still a lot of rust on the back, so, there may be other numbers, logos, or a maker's mark there somewhere. The inner cover has a name engraved on it. I'm not very good figuring out fancy writing like this, but, it looks like Louis Jacot Locle to me. Locke makes more sense than Locle, but, it just doesn't look like a K to me. Opinions?

 

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[cudamark]

I just figured out that that name is the name of the watch company! .800 silver If I read this correctly....

 

[Silvermonkey]

What a great find! I love your photo work. Can't provide any help beyond that. Congrats!

 

[Red-Coat]

Nice looking case.

“Locle” is for the small city of “Le Locle” in Switzerland (and also generally the district around it), well-known as a watch-making centre. There were several makers with the name “Jacot” operating there from the late 1800s onwards, but Louis Jacot was born in Le Locle in 1860 and watches bearing his name are generally from between about 1901-1949. Stylistically, yours looks to be from the early years.

Swiss case-makers operated with the two silver standards of .800 and .875 for export until the end of 1887 and then to a standard of .935 (pitched slightly above Sterling to avoid the possibility of failing British assay). If the case is silver, I would expect there to be a hallmark, which would be either be an upright bear in a shield for export to America, or three upright bears (a small one above two large ones) if it reached America via Britain. I don’t see any hallmarks in your pictures though, so I would suspect the case is not silver unless the hallmarks are out of view.

This would be for export to Britain, or with only the small upper bear for America:



They then moved to the Sterling standard in 1933 with a duck hallmark.

The movement will be by someone else and either assembled by Jacot or a third party. Not much more that can be said unless you are able to describe more fully what might be engraved on the movement or provide some good close-up pictures.

 

[oldmxrat]

Very cool find, whatever it turns out to be made of, congrats!
Once again, good job Red-coat!

 

[Digger RJ]

Well, not exactly a today's find, but, I just took it out of a week's soaking in Evaporust today. I found it at a fairly old location and would like to get more info from you watch and handwriting experts out there. I don't see any maker's name anywhere, but, I do see some serial? numbers. There is one on the mechanism and one of the inner flap, and they match. It looks to be silver plated copper near as I can tell. Nothing but rust on the face side, and there is still a lot of rust on the back, so, there may be other numbers, logos, or a maker's mark there somewhere. The inner cover has a name engraved on it. I'm not very good figuring out fancy writing like this, but, it looks like Louis Jacot Locle to me. Locke makes more sense than Locle, but, it just doesn't look like a K to me. Opinions?

Cool!!! Cleanup did Nice!! Silver or Silver Plate, all those old pocket watches are fun to find!!! Congrats!!!

 

[cudamark]

It has a hallmark, but, I can't quite make out what it is. Looks more like a bird (a turkey maybe?) The box has 0,800 in it, and there's a JH stamped below and left of that, and an 8 stamped in the lower right. Toward the bottom is 47554 which I presume is the serial number and it is stamped into the outer cover and inner mechanism frame as well. I'll try and get a decent photo of the hallmark.......

 

[cudamark]

Here's a couple of photos that may help. The hall mark in question is above the 800 box. In looking at the one, I see what looks like a tiny T inside the hallmark box.

 

[Red-Coat]

Thanks. That helps. Although I said a new standard of .935 was introduced at the end of 1887 (largely to ensure compliance with the British Sterling standard), it was still permitted to produce to the .800 standard until the true Sterling standard of .925 was introduced on 20th June 1933.



Most case-makers didn’t want to carry two standards of silver and produced only in .935 (with a bear or three bears mark) for export from 1888 onwards. Non-exporters, those prepared to have two standards in operation, and especially those who didn’t regard Britain as an export customer continued to use .800 silver. The mark for .800 from 1880 until 19th June 1933 was a standing bird called a “coq de bruyère” facing right, like this:



That translates to English as “heather cock”, which we also know as a “wood grouse” or “capercaillie”. So 1880 would be the earliest possible date for the case (and 1933 the latest possible), but there only seems to be a record of watches marked for Louis Jacot of Le Locle from about 1900 onwards.

I can’t make out the “tiny T” in the hallmark box but, if you’re seeing it correctly, it will be for the Bureaux de Contrôle (assay office) in Tramelan, Switzerland. That would make sense as the nearest assay office to Le Locle… it’s about 20 miles away.

The ‘JH’ maker mark doesn’t ring any bells I’m afraid.

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Very nice !