Five Things to Check before Buying an Antique Pocket Watch

Dec 30
09:34

2010

Asuka Jeong

Asuka Jeong

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Watches tell time, something that is an integral part of each and everyone’s day to day life. How you look at your time each day depends on what you are carrying on you.

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Many like pocket watches instead of wearing them on their wrist. These are handy and stylish,Five Things to Check before Buying an Antique Pocket Watch Articles especially when you want to wear them with formal clothing. For people who would want to create a style statement, antique pocket watches look trendy. Nowadays pockets watches are not just meant for gentlemen but ladies love carrying them as well.

Antique pocket watches are usually made with metal outer covers and look extremely traditional. In fact many people not only like carrying pocket watches but also love collecting them as a hobby. People who are passionate about pocket watches are usually ready to pay any price for obtaining their collection of watches and putting them up on display. It is not very difficult to get hold of an antique pocket watch nowadays. These are available via many online shopping portals and they do offer great deals. But it is important to check a few things before you go for an antique pocket watch.

Firstly, see whether the watch that you are buying is really antique. By this, I mean that there can be many frauds where they claim that they are old watches but might just be manufactured recently. Fundamentally, an antique pocket watch is called antique in its true sense if only it dates back to 1890 and before. This is the period when antique watches were really introduced. So beware and check inside if it dates back to the seventeenth century.

Secondly, check the price against the product that you are being offered. If it really dates back to the seventeenth century then the price should be more than the modern day pocket watches. Also, older antique pocket watches might also carry jewels; this means these would be more expensive. Again, price would be more depending on the quality of jewels and make of the watch itself. Many pocket watches are also made up of silver or gold instead of other metals like copper. These act as family treasures and get passed on from generation to generation as heirlooms.

Thirdly, see the working condition. It should be ticking and the hands should be aligned properly. If it is really antique, then seldom would there be any manufacturing defect but you still would need to check.

Fourthly, check for the glass used in the antique pocket watch. Sometimes if these watches are really old then the glasses break and are replaced by other glasses which might not be of superior quality. Check for scratches and minor cracks.

Fifth and the last thing is to check if the pocket watch is also being sold with a case. This is something that buyers might skip to note but it is important since you would also need to store your pocket watch at times or even while carrying it. For obvious reasons, the price would also differ according to the quality and make of the case of the watch itself.