Can anyone tell me what this Lady's Omega watch is please?

[corporateangel]

Hi

This is my first post so if I make any errors then please excuse them in advance 😀

I love Omega Watches and felt it was time to get one for my wife, so at an auction in the UK I bought her an Omega she particularly liked. Prior to the auction I spent hours trying to find this watch or something similar on the internet, went to the Omega Vintage Watch Database, talked to watch collecter friends and could find absolutely nothing. I also emailed Omega and they came back with:

"Unfortunately having tried to locate information with the number you have supplied I am unable to provide you with a model, however I can tell you that this would be classed as a vintage timepiece and would need to come into us for authentication and if you wish an estimate for service, we would be unable to advise with regard to costs prior to examination of the watch within our workshops. "

This is the watch:




The watch is 18k including the bracelet and the model number is 11461787, approximate date of manufacturer 1965, aside from this I have no other information 🙁

I would be very grateful for any information anyone can provide about this watch.

Thanks

 

[dsio]

It looks kind of like a ladymatic from that era, can you do some more high res pics from other sides and angles (including any markings and the clasp).

Just out of interest, how much was it at auction?

 

[corporateangel]

Hi Ashley
Its back in the UK at the moment (I'm in Penang) so I will have to get someone to take some extra pics and then post them here. If you don't mind I'll keep the auction price quiet as my wife maybe following this thread and as its her Birthday present (August)!

 

[dsio]

Ah that's completely understandable, my only reason for asking was to verify that the price was reasonably in line with the gold weight for an 18kt solid gold (and not gold capped) watch. Also was it a major auction house or a small auction?

 

[corporateangel]

It was quite a well known auctioneer in England. Normally I wouldn't buy unless I have bullet proof research, but as it was a present I didn't mind spending the money. 😀

 

[dsio]

corporateangel

It was quite a well known auctioneer in England. Normally I wouldn't buy unless I have bullet proof research, but as it was a present I didn't mind spending the money. 😀

Well that really is the problem with these ladies pieces isn't it, with the mens, some google searching, some consultation with experts, reading some books, and consulting the Omega archives and you've got a good picture of what you're buying, and where/when it came from.

Men don't care about ladies watches, or write books about them, or make websites about them, and ladies have better (and probably more productive) things to be doing than documenting old watches so there's this big chunk of Omega's history that is probably documented somewhere in the basements of Swatch Group but otherwise is completely unknown. Honestly just the Ladymatic range itself have at least 15 different bracelet styles alone that I've seen with countless dial combinations, probably every bit as many as the Constellation range but its a bit like a jigsaw puzzle.

What I find really astonishing is the condition of that watch. It is as clean as a whistle, no wear, no damage to that very fragile looking bracelet, even the dial looks fresh with only a hint of even patina.

Two things you can tell about the lady that originally owned it:

1: She had some money
2: She didn't wear it much

 

[corporateangel]

I think that the lady did have money as the husband had two Pateks in the same auction! My fathers checked the bracelet carefully and it has no faults (based on his limited expertise!). I looked at every 18k watch on the Omega Vintage watch forum (men and womens) from 1963 - 1968 and couldn't match it up (may just be my inability). I checked every combination that I could think of on Google and Google images and found nothing even similar, even Omega couldn't help me? - a real Omega mystery!

 

[dsio]

corporateangel

I think that the lady did have money as the husband had two Pateks in the same auction! My fathers checked the bracelet carefully and it has no faults (based on his limited expertise!). I looked at every 18k watch on the Omega Vintage watch forum (men and womens) from 1963 - 1968 and couldn't match it up (may just be my inability). I checked every combination that I could think of on Google and Google images and found nothing even similar, even Omega couldn't help me? - a real Omega mystery!

Wonder if your dad, or whoever checked the numbers misread a digit or something? Was that meant to be the serial number, because its not a common form reference from that era IIRC

 

[corporateangel]

I'll get a hi-res pic of the back of the watch and post it when I get it. The only information I have is that number I gave earlier, I think that it's a watch model number. During my research hunting I came across this:

The third best identifier of a watch is a model number. OMEGA model numbers are not stamped on the watch, but may appear on the box or warranty card. You might think that knowing the model number would be better than having a photograph. But outside of OMEGA, hardly anyone has the ability to look up model numbers older than about 10 years. And since models numbers do not appear on the watches themselves, collectors and vintage watch dealers may not even know the model numbers of watches they have. So like with a serial number, you would need OMEGA to convert many older model numbers into useful information.

 

[corporateangel]

I should add that this watch is a 'backwinder' - I'm guessing that it could be the Cal 690? There still seems to be very little information on these watches even with this extra 'nugget' of information.

 

[dsio]

corporateangel

I should add that this watch is a 'backwinder' - I'm guessing that it could be the Cal 690? There still seems to be very little information on these watches even with this extra 'nugget' of information.

I think the Cal 690 was a rectangular movement designed for bracelet watches like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/OMEGA-VINTAGE-M...ristwatches&hash=item588e91733b#ht_764wt_1189

Yours I'd peg as Cal 640 which is the round version of the movement, pictured on this page: http://oldswisswatches.com/Spares/omega_movements_1.htm

 

[corporateangel]

Thanks Ashley, I'm sure your right about it being a Cal 640.
I'm narrowing things down as I go along, I'm sure that the watch comes from the Omega Jewellery collection.

So based on my current research its an 18k Omega Ladies watch with backwinder, 1965 from the Omega Jewellery Collection, Cal 640. It would be nice if I could find another one still in existance - or would it?! 😉

 

[dsio]

corporateangel

Thanks Ashley, I'm sure your right about it being a Cal 640.
I'm narrowing things down as I go along, I'm sure that the watch comes from the Omega Jewellery collection.

So based on my current research its an 18k Omega Ladies watch with backwinder, 1965 from the Omega Jewellery Collection, Cal 640. It would be nice if I could find another one still in existance - or would it?! 😉

I'm wondering if that number is the bracelet number, or clasp number, or possibly a combination of a couple of different numbers run together. It'd be great to find a reference from a similar backwinder and try to match the pattern of that number to the number you have some how.

 

[dsio]

This would be a close cousin: http://www.kalmarantiques.com.au/18ct-diamond-back-set-omega-watch-es118.aspx

 

[mondodec]

THere is a possibility that this model is a cal 440 handwind. The Omega symbol at 1200 is consistent with some designs that came out in the late 50s and early 60's. Looks to me to be more a montre bijoux example than a run-of-the-mill gold women's watch.

The 440 only 13.5mm with crown on the case back. So in order to narrow down the movement and assist you to learn more about the watch, perhaps you could provide the following info: Is the winder on the back of the watch? How to you set the time? What is the diameter of the watch? Is it automatic? Are there any numbers on the bracelet clasp?

It could also be a Rayville cal 640, as Omega purchase the Rayville factory for its tooling and expertise in manufacturing small movements. It kept the Blancpain name on ice until the 80s.

It is well worth your while to have the case back popped on this watch and if possible to photograph the movement. The model number is inconsistent with Omega models of the period as they were five digit numbers and you may have been quoting the case makers number, and so a picture of the inner case back could also help.

I figure the design is a fifties/very early sixties design. which is pointing towards the cal 440. I doubt if it is an example of the later 6xx series calibres.

Cheers

Desmond

corporateangel

Hi

This is my first post so if I make any errors then please excuse them in advance 😀

I love Omega Watches and felt it was time to get one for my wife, so at an auction in the UK I bought her an Omega she particularly liked. Prior to the auction I spent hours trying to find this watch or something similar on the internet, went to the Omega Vintage Watch Database, talked to watch collecter friends and could find absolutely nothing. I also emailed Omega and they came back with:

"Unfortunately having tried to locate information with the number you have supplied I am unable to provide you with a model, however I can tell you that this would be classed as a vintage timepiece and would need to come into us for authentication and if you wish an estimate for service, we would be unable to advise with regard to costs prior to examination of the watch within our workshops. "

This is the watch:




The watch is 18k including the bracelet and the model number is 11461787, approximate date of manufacturer 1965, aside from this I have no other information 🙁

I would be very grateful for any information anyone can provide about this watch.

Thanks