Old timers tick on in brace of pocket watch auctions

There are some 50 of Hughes's timepieces in the sale, dating from the 1900s back to the 1700s - virtually the dawn of the pocket watch era "Whilst examining the collection, I came across a couple of gold pocket watches with indistinct markings which alerted me to the possibility that they could be by the highly sought after Swiss watchmakers, Patek Philippe Subsequent correspondence with the factory confirmed that they were indeed Pateks and featured in their production ledgers," Sharma says.

In 18 carat rose gold and dating from 1902 this open-faced watch is estimated at $2000 to $3000 - a price in line with several others in the collection Many of the early watches are beautifully decorated, including a silver and enamel open face Continental watch circa 1830 with foliate engraved dial plate inset with two enamel miniatures, enamel being sparingly used on many early watches because of its cost Tanya Philips from Philips' jewellery department says the owner was a surgeon who was fascinated by watch movements.

A tortoiseshell cased open-faced watch by William Clarke, London, 1730s to 1740s, is $1500 to $3000 and a pair-cased open-faced watch by Dev Bonley of London dating from the 1750s, the back worked with a religious scene, is $2000 to $4000 For more watch news go to the AFR's Watch magazine. . Source