Hello all . . . .

My 92 year old father just gave me his father's "gold watch".
He has no memory about the age or history of the watch, although he thinks my grandfather
got it long after he served in the Army during WWI.

So I believe it could be at least 70 years old, maybe more.

I have researched what I could online about the company, but can't find any way to decipher the information on the back, other then the 18k.

I would really appreciate if anyone can help me . . . . the watch is not working and pretty tarnished. I am trying to decide if it is worth restoring.

Thanks so much,

Craig

 

Heirloom watches are the best watches of all.

Yours needs no restoration at all to retain its function and its charm. Just have the movement serviced by an independent watchmaker. This way you can wear the watch as a reliable timepiece and have the special knowledge that the dial you're looking at now is the exact same dial your grandfather looked at to tell the time.

 

Thanks so much for the quick reply . . . . and appreciate the point of view ! I fully agree with you, but I'm still going to try and track down some more info . . . it's gotta be out there somewhere !

 

Mathey-Tissot (nothing to do with the other Tissot) was a high end watch company in the era that your grandfather purchased his watch.
I don't know if it's a "resurrected" brand or if it's still the original company.

You could always email them and see if they are able to help.

https://www.matheytissot.com/b2b/en/

[email protected]

 

Your grandfather was not screwing around when he purchased that watch. It may be surprisingly economical to have a local independent watchmaker put it back into working order. Worth every penny.

The bracelet may be too delicate to wear, but again, your trusted local watchmaker can advise you on that. Put it on a light-colored pigskin or reptile strap and it will look like a million US dollars. The watch wants to be worn again.

 

Thanks for the advice !! Appreciated. I think the watch is easily 75 or 80 years old.

Not to bore you, but my grandfather died 52 years ago, when I was only 10. We did not live near him so I did not know him that well. And my Dad, now 92 years old, can't really remember anything about this watch except he inherited it.

But the story goes my grandfather left Russia in 1910, at 16 years old, to come to the United States. He came on a boat through Ellis Island ( and the Statue of Liberty ) and then settled in Brooklyn, NY. He joined the Army during World War I and after the war returned to NYC where he sold wholesale fruit to grocery stores.

He was not educated and I do not believe he was wealthy . . . .but I know now he must have saved some money and liked nice watches !!

 

Congrats, looks really nice, and probably expensive for the time given the 18k case. Wear it in great memory of your grandfather

 

As noted above, I would have the movement serviced and leave it at that. No further restoration. You will not be able to totally remove the signs of age on the dial without damaging it, and overall I would prefer to leave it as it was worn by my grandfather.

 

looks really nice, just service and it will be perfect. Great thing to have that family memory and to keep it in family.

 

Meausre carefully; many of these old watches use inch sizes instead of metric. NOS straps in inch sizes can be had in eBay; otherwise most odd-numbered straps are better suited to vintage.

Fabulous watch, I hope you wear it after you get it serviced!

 

Well, thanks to this very nice recommendation I did reach out to the current Mathey Tissot company. And today they were nice enough to respond . . . but were of no assistance.

Next stop . . . Manhattan Time Services, my favorite independent watch repair shop. Thanks again to everyone for their comments !

 

UPDATE, just in case anyone is interested . . . :

I bought some gold polish and my granfather's antique Mathey Tissot watch cleaned up very nicely ( see pictures below compared to the first ones I posted ). With the glass crystal cleaner the dial looks brighter too. Additionally, with the band polished I can see it is marked 14K. So the watch says 18K and the band 14K . . . . not bad for my grandfather !

Operationally, I lubed the clasp and was able to put the watch on my wrist. It actually fits fine. It is incredibly thin and lightweight . . . I literrally cannot feel any weight.

The watch contains a SOFIOR manual movement based on the writing on the caseback . . . . it winds counterclockwise. I wound it about 20 spins and the hands began moving. However, I could not set the time as the stem does not move in or out.

The hands have now stopped. I will not play with it any more . . . . I have an appt May 6th to have it inspected and will absolutely get it serviced if possible.

I am not a gold or jewelry person, but if it can be fixed I will look for opportunities to wear this thing instead of always my Omegas.

Craig

 

Switzerland used a hallmarking system known as "Poinçons de Maître" (Punch of the Master) to identify gold watch case manufacturers.


Yours has a "hammerhead" mark on the left with the number 161 inside:



That mark and number identifies the case maker as Joseph Erard SA. The company is now a part of Hermès International SA.

The mark on the right is Helvetia, the female national personification of Switzerland, and it signifies the case as 18 karat gold.

 

WOW WOW WOW ! Thanks so so much for posting this. Very helpful. So appreciated.

My aunt told me today she can't remember for sure but she thinks my grandfather got this watch for his 50th birthday . . . . that would make it 76 years old.

 

UPDATE:

For anyone interested I had my grandfather's vintage gold watch serviced where my daughter lives in New York City. by a well known and reputable watchmaker. He was very familiar with the watch. After dropping the watch off he called me a few weeks later . . . the watch needed a pretty good overhaul with replacement of the mainspring, the stem and a few other parts, as well as full service of the movement. The estimate was over $500 which I felt was reasonable and agreed to. It turned out to be a little bit more, which was fine with me.

The watch was finished about two weeks ago and my daughter brought it to me this weekend when she came to visit for Father's Day. I am very happy with the results. The watch is now working perfectly. After setting the time and winding it fully it kept essentially perfect time. It ran for about 13 hours . . . I thought it would be longer but for a 75 year old piece I assume that's ok. They did also clean and polish the gold and the watch looks kind of special in person

Currently I really have no place to wear an all gold watch, but if an occasion arises I am now ready. A wonderful heirloom.

 

the hands are absolutely gorgeous! never seen those before

 

Very nice!
And a good result for wearing it in the future.

 

You probably aren't winding it fully which is why you are getting such little run time. Carefully wind it fully, it should run for at least 30 hours or so.

 

Thanks and I called the shop back. They told me several of the internal parts were replaced as well as the mainspring, the crown and the stem, and as I continued to wind it things would "loosen up" and I would be able wind it more and run it longer. But they also assured me they would look at it again if needed as there is a full one year parts and labor warranty.

Well, after continuously winding it for several days in a row the watch is now running 29 1/2 hours. In that time it is runs about 1 minute fast. The winding is indeed much looser than a few days ago, and actually now feels pretty similar to my Apollo 8 DSOTM Speedmaster.

So all is good, I'm very pleased, and thanks to everyone !!