Some thoughts on the elusive Contax

Posts

271

Likes

565

Tohz

·Jun 20, 2026

From a Hermès watch catalogue

 

Posts

6,723

Likes

10,509

Mark020

·Jun 20, 2026·not the sharpest pencil in the ΩF drawer

Fantastic. Any idea about the year?

 

Posts

271

Likes

565

Tohz

·Jun 21, 2026

Mark020

Fantastic. Any idea about the year?

There is no year mentioned, but probably 1936 I would think.

 

Posts

121

Likes

371

nicola1960

·Jul 17, 2026

Mark020

Nice article on OF: https://orologi.forumfree.it/?t=80471837#entry674613437

https://neverseenb4.it/en/magazine/the-history-of-martel-watch/

 

Posts

271

Likes

565

Tohz

·Jul 29, 2026

Contax with ref. 5124 and serial no. 665238 coming up for auction today:
https://bid.plymouthauctions.co.uk/...-details/4ba5ff63-7916-4d8b-935e-b48900d30ff2

 

Posts

1,206

Likes

3,062

Mazoue

·Jul 29, 2026

Tohz

Contax with ref. 5124 and serial no. 665238 coming up for auction today:
https://bid.plymouthauctions.co.uk/...-details/4ba5ff63-7916-4d8b-935e-b48900d30ff2

I presume you're not bidding?

 

Posts

27

Likes

37

marc92

·Jul 30, 2026

That Contax went for 4.9K GBP excluding fees I’m pretty sure. Was watching the auction yesterday.

 

Posts

170

Likes

416

martinc

·Jul 30, 2026

marc92

That Contax went for 4.9K GBP excluding fees I’m pretty sure. Was watching the auction yesterday.

£4900 + 27.6 % premium + 3.6 % sales tax (+ additional taxes etc. if sold to someone outside UK).
That´s nearly 6500 pounds, or 7500 euro or 8700 USD.

 

Posts

21

Likes

39

Anthor

·Jul 31, 2026

martinc

4900 sterline + 27,6% di premio + 3,6% di imposta sulle vendite (+ tasse aggiuntive ecc. se venduto a qualcuno al di fuori del Regno Unito).
Si tratta di quasi 6500 sterline, ovvero 7500 euro o 8700 dollari.

Not so much 😊

 

Posts

27

Likes

37

marc92

·Jul 31, 2026

It is quite a bit for a Contax with no service history, unattractive yellowing of the dial, and a relatively grimy case to be honest.

 

Posts

962

Likes

2,342

Carlton-Browne

·Jul 31, 2026

I suspect that the yellowing of the dial is mostly the ancient crystal. It's the wrong shade for tobacco staining - in my view.

 

Posts

27

Likes

37

marc92

·Jul 31, 2026

I had a hunch that might be what it was but I couldn’t tell for certain. The write up in the auction stated, “plastic face has yellowed with age,” which I guess points to the crystal as the dial is obviously not plastic. Still wasn’t enough assurance for me to bid on it, especially with some of the corrosion I saw in the pics. Hopefully someone braver than myself from the forum snagged it and will clean up the case and install a new crystal. I’d be eager to see what it looks like cleaned up.