Antique 1904 Hallmarked Silver New Victor Pocket Watch by William Ehrhardt

  

The watch measures 52mm diameter excluding the stem and the loop. The case is silver and there are hallmarks inside both of the back covers for Sterling silver, Birmingham, 1904, with a maker's mark for William Ehrhardt. Both covers also carry the serial number 530162, a letter I and number 98. The maker's mark is punched into the front and back of the stem. The same serial number 530162 is engraved on the movement.

The case has no dents. Engine turned detail to the back of the watch with a vacant cartouche to the centre. The watch glass is in very good condition. The watch has an enamel dial with bold black Roman numerals.

It has been tucked away somewhere for a long time. It has a key but has been wound tight and does not run at present. William Ehrhardt (1831- 1897) was born and raised in Germany where he served an apprenticeship as a watchmaker. He arrived in England in 1851, the year of the Great Exhibition, and started his career working for Upjohn & Bright watchmakers in London.

He was best known for making watches using machinery rather than traditional methods. In 1856 Ehrhardt set up his own company in Birmingham and proceeded to make watches by machinery. He was one of the pioneers of watchmaking by machinery in England, and had chosen Birmingham because it was away from the traditional centres of English watch making.

Historically, watches had been made by hand by craftsmen using specialised skills. Ehrhardt anticipated that his factory methods would be opposed by the traditionalists and business might suffer. Locating far away from the London watch-making centre was also not going to be a problem finding employees.

Ehrhardt wanted machine operators for his factory, not traditional watchmakers. Ehrhardt operated from several locations in Birmingham. In 1874 he built a new factory, Time Works, in Barr Street, to increase production. It is thought that by this time Ehrhardt had produced 200,000 watches. Ehrhardt was granted a patent, No.

6406 dated 1894, for improvements in the hand-setting mechanism of keyless watches. The English watch industry was in its dying days. When the economic depression of the 1920's arrived, and the company went bankrupt in 1923.

This item is in the category "Jewellery & Watches\Watches, Parts & Accessories\Watches\Pocket Watches". The seller is "keithicke_3" and is located in this country: GB.

This item can be shipped to United Kingdom, Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Republic of Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Australia, United States, Bahrain, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, China, Israel, Hong Kong, Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Belize, Bermuda, Bolivia, Barbados, Brunei Darussalam, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Egypt, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Guadeloupe, Grenada, French Guiana, Iceland, Jersey, Jordan, Cambodia, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Saint Lucia, Liechtenstein, Sri Lanka, Macau, Monaco, Maldives, Montserrat, Martinique, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Reunion, Turks and Caicos Islands, Aruba, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, Chile, Bahamas, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Kuwait, Panama, Philippines, Qatar, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominican Republic, El Salvador.

• Movement: Mechanical (Manual)
• Closure: Open Face
• Indices: Roman Numerals
• Dial Colour: White
• Year Manufactured: 1900-1909
• Brand: William Ehrhardt
• Type: Pocket Watch
• Department: Men
• Case Colour: Silver
• Escapement Type: Lever
• Model: 530162
• Features: 12-Hour Dial, Enamelled Dial, Seconds Hand
• Case Finish: Engine turned
• Case Material: Silver
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United Kingdom
• Display: Analogue