I'll be picking this up after lunch and will post photos when I get it but I wondered .... would you have looked twice at this watch?

AN OMEGA 18CT GOLD GENTLEMAN'S WRISTWATCH CHRONOMETRE calibre 283, with Omega maintenance booklet/Certificate of Origin (movement No 12379981, purchaser's name and date January 20 1952), another Omega booklet and maker's pigskin leather box, 3.3cm

 

Officially certified 283? Mmmmm...
Any movement and inner caseback pics?

 

That's it. That's all you got from the auction house.

The main listing was shorter than that given above. The single photo and text is what's available as the complete condition report if you're registered with the auction house.

 

Depends on the price. Wonder what it looks like in the flesh

 

It was less than a grand ... just ... and I'll be able to show you later

 

What made you look twice at it and pay that much? With the available info I would've paid 100 perhaps, if I was in the right mood.

 

It's 18ct gold ... £100 wouldn't have bought the caseback. I'm heading out to pick it up now. Post office; call in at this auction house to collect my buys; then viewing at another; before, getting home and I can share why I bought it.

 

Hm. I don't think that the Gold in that case is worth more than 300-400$
Missing crown, dial in poor condition.

 

Yup, yup, yup .. it's the broken stem that's a ball-ache ... I still wanted it. As I couldn't attend the auction, I left a high commission bid and was driven up to £750 ... just on my way out the door...

 

Interesting..what's the size on it?

 

That case looks interesting with the inverted(?) lugs, but then there is a lot work to do with this one. Would love to see the movement, though, as well as the caseback!

 

With a watch lacking the crown you must be prepared to find a rusty movement - you are extremely lucky if the movement is sound.

At an auction where the movement is not shown I am always at the cautious side.

The dial is in bad condition - so likely due to moisture intrusion...

One moment I condidered a bid at a max. of the higher estimate but then I decided to give it a miss.

It would have been a different decision if it were not stated it contains a cal. 283 - a 30 T2 SC Rg would be a different story.

Just my thoughts

I am curious about the outcome

 

Interested to see what the watch looks like when you have it in your hands

 

OK, guys and gals, here she is:

And the rusty movement?

But to make up for the terrible shape of this thing, it did come with a box:

... and there were a few scraps of stuff in the box too:

(And it all still has that old leather smell!

 

Cool piece, you are definitely more aware of hidden jewels than I sir, I commend you. No way I would have ventured there at that price....

"Old leather smell".

As a collector of 50's and 60's British sports cars I'm quite used to the olfactory scent of leather that's been around for a while. Always thought the smell was attributed to the horsehair padding found under the leather. Guessing I was wrong.

 

You could be absolutely right - the smell on this one comes from a stitched leather pad in the box. I've never had one of these boxes and only seen a couple so I'm guessing it's either a rarer version or just an old one that hasn't survived well.

 

I didn’t know a 283 is a chronometer rated movement.

 

It's not.

 

Congrats

 

I know .... so I did some reading online prior to bidding and found a number of watches, from 1952, all dennison cased, with 283's and marked as chronometers on the dial ... here's one of them where the seller himself says he's puzzled: https://mrjoneswatches.com/products/omega-chronometer

Edit: meant to say - note the serials are just 40-odd apart. Ifound it quite interesting and just a little bit exciting.