Does anyone have a copy of this advert with a high enough resolution that the descriptions of each reference can be read and understood?

From what I can make out, the references and descriptions are as follows (? where I am uncertain):

20214/12 - Golden centre, ? marker ring (watch pictured at the top of the advert)

20217/4 - Black centre, radium dots, grey marker ring
20217/? - White centre, deep ? marker ring
20217/8 - Black centre, ? marker ring
20217/? - Polished steel centre and marker ring
20217/? - Black centre, gold markers and deep grey marker ring

20214/2 - Golden centre and marker ring
20214/13 - Black centre, ? marker ring
20214/14 - Golden centre, ? marker ring
20214/? - Black centre, radium dots, golden marker ring
20214/11 - Golden centre, deep ? marker ring

 

With information from the springbar blog, I'd hazard to say that:

 

Thanks very much, I agree with some of your guesses but not all.

What we desperately need is a better copy of this advert. Anyone?

 

@Dre?

 

Cheers for that, doing my bit while biting my nails with eBay...

 

What we should do is compile an image of each of the references in the advertisement. Here is mine under violet light.

 

wow!!!

 

Fabulous. I presume this is your 20214/13, which I believe is the watch shown second from the left on the bottom row of the advert.

There are a couple of problems with using examples for each of the references that I can think of.

Firstly, I don't think I've seen examples for some of these references e.g. I don't recall ever seeing a 20217/10 (assuming that is what the advert says) and a google search doesn't produce any results.

Secondly, we cannot be sure that the examples are actually correct. The Springbar blog takes this approach and although it is an excellent reference, there are a number of watches pictured that I am not 100% sure about.

Finally, it would seem that references changed over time e.g. slightly different dial variations or a change of hands. It would be nice to know the descriptions of the original versions.

Once we know the descriptions of the original references, I agree that it would be great to have an example for each reference. For example, before studying the advert, I had not previously made the distinction between the white dialled versions and the polished steel dialled versions.

I've tried enhancing the image but without luck. If anyone does find a better copy of this advert then please do post it here.

 

The source of this image can be found here, although I am unsure if it is any easier to read:
https://omegaforums.net/threads/discussion-on-broad-arrow-polerouters.22637/

 

Calling @Severin and hoping that he hears the call.

But assuming that you cannot work, you should have time now...

 

Hi Bill

Did you have any luck tracking down a copy of this advert?

 

I'm keener than ever to track down a copy of this advert.

Does anyone have any ideas how I might track it down? Online databases or libraries?

It will date to around 1955 and was presumably a US advertisement.

 

Ive had a request out with AdPatina for quite a while, but no luck yet...

 

In the Netherlands most papers now have an online database. Some funny ads there btw:
This one is from 1966 and says: if you own 2 houses and 2 cars you most likely own just 1 watch: a Universal

 

There is one in the UK as well, however only your first 3 page views are free

https://www.britishnewspaperarchive...arch=false&retrievecountrycounts=false&page=0

 

Google finds a copy of this advert in Chilton's Jewelers Circular/Keystone, volume 126, no. 6-12, Mar-Sept 1956, p. 272. Unfortunately, the ad is unavailable online due to copyright restrictions. It may be available in a library archive. However, Google provides just enough OCR text to help fill in most of the gaps, except for the description of 20214/12:

20214/12 - Golden centre, ? marker ring (watch pictured at the top of the advert)

20217/4 - Black centre, radium dots, grey marker ring
20217/4 Black center, radium dots, gray marker ring

20217/? - White centre, deep ? marker ring
20217/10 White center, deep blue marker ring

20217/8 - Black centre, ? marker ring
20217/8 Black center, nitelite marker ring

20217/? - Polished steel centre and marker ring
20217/5 Polished steel center and marker ring

20217/? - Black centre, gold markers and deep grey marker ring
20217/9 Black center, gold markers and deep gray marker ring

20214/2 - Golden centre and marker ring
20214/2 Golden center and marker ring

20214/13 - Black centre, ? marker ring
20214/13 Black center, nitelite marker ring

20214/14 - Golden centre, ? marker ring
20214/14 Golden center, nitelite marker ring

20214/? - Black centre, radium dots, golden marker ring
20214/4 Black center, radium dots, golden marker ring

20214/11 - Golden centre, deep ? marker ring
20214/11 Golden center, deep blue marker ring

 

Thanks so much! I'll try to get myself a copy.

I agree that it does look as if the marker ring for both the 20217/10 and 20214/11 are described as "deep blue" but I would be surprised if this was the case.

As you can see from the gallery on the Polerouter reference site, these two references have the same marker ring but it is difficult to imagine that they were ever blue.

 

The Jeweler's Circular Keystone is still publishing today. The official archives are at their office in New York City:
https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/learned-baselworld-jck-archives/

I checked eBay for back issues of JCK from 1956 with no luck. Maybe a nice letter to their editor will yield some help? Maybe a UG wonk living in NYC will help ? The closest I could get to an archive copy was an image of a front cover from April 1956, but I think the UG advert you are looking for is from September 1956 based upon similar ads promoting the Polarouter family placed in other magazines (such as National Geographic) at that time.

 

The UG ad from October 1956 initially led me astray because of its similar text promoting "11 different models" and "global protected watch." But it did indicate UG was advertising a family of Polarouters in magazines issued in the second half of 1956.