Pocket Watches

This earliest of stylish yet useful accessories was invented in the 16th century and formed part of every elegant wardrobe until the early 1900s. Men wore theirs on a fob chain, while women sported them around the neck. If you were lucky you’d inherit one – depending on how rich your family was, it might be made of gold, silver or brass.

You used to have to open the caseback and wind it up with a key, until Patek Philippe introduced watches with a crown at the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were early adopters.

A century later, in our era of increasing uniformity, nostalgia for characterful vintage aesthetics and mechanics is on the rise. A pocket watch is a nice individualistic touch, even if you don’t want to go the whole hog with steampunk accoutrements like a top hat, a whalebone corset, or flying goggles.

Tissot, Longines, the German brand Laco and the Japanese Orient Watch Company are some of the brands offering contemporary pocket watches.

Talking Points

A pocket watch makes a bold statement, adding a little theatrical flair to any look. Even an understated model can be spiced up with different fobs or chains to suit your outfit, depending on the occasion.

Ever wondered about that little pocket on the front of your jeans? Yup, it was originally a watch pocket. Cowboys kept their watch in their waistcoat, so Levis introduced this more convenient pocket.

Take a leaf from James Dean’s book and wear your pocket watch hanging from your belt loop like the famous 1950s actor. Instead of a chain, you can attach it to a leather strap for a more rugged, casual look.

You can choose a new or pre-owned pocket watch – there are lots of beautiful vintage models still in working condition, although modern materials and techniques make newer versions more robust and hassle-free.

The world’s most complicated mechanical watch is a pocket watch. In 2015, following eight years of rigorous work, Vacheron Constantin completed the Reference 57260 featuring a phenomenal 57 complications.

History of Pocket Watches

Early 1500s Europe saw the first portable, ornamented ‘clock-watches’ that people fastened to their clothes. When Charles II of England introduced the waistcoat in 1675, they migrated to men’s pockets and took on the round, flat shape we know today; a chain secured them to a button hole so they weren’t lost or dropped.

They had no glass over the dial, and initially only an hour hand. With innovations to the movement, they needed winding up only once, not twice, a day. A crystal was added to protect the face, and later hunter-case (or savonette) watches were introduced, with hinged lids.

In the mid-1800s pocket watches began to be machine-manufactured with interchangeable parts, bringing the price down. The trench watches fashioned by soldiers in the First World War ushered in a more convenient wrist-worn design, which eclipsed the pocket watch in due course.

Pocket watches saw a slight resurgence in the late 1970s with the vogue for three-piece suits (think John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever) and in recent times, the taste for vintage mechanical objects has brought them back into the spotlight.

Buying Advice

An important consideration when buying a pocket watch is what you’re going to be wearing it with. After all, it needs to be carried, or somehow attached to you, and you’ll want a watch that complements your overall style.

The optimum size and weight will be dictated by your clothes. Do you plan to slip it into a waistcoat pocket – if so, how big and sturdy is the pocket? Or would that interfere with the line of your clothes?

Perhaps it would look better hanging down from a belt loop, in which case you might want a lighter-weight watch case?

How long should the chain be, or would you prefer to pair it with a fob of leather or some other material? A fine chain is dressier, but something more solid might be safer for day-to-day activities.

Modern buyers often opt for silver, which goes well with most colour combinations, is resilient, and has a nice sheen, but gold, steel, and brass are also possibilities.

The caseback on a pocket watch offers a great canvas – engraved with a personal message, it makes a fabulous gift!