WWII 25 year anniversary Pocket watch

RCHill · Tues. 6:34pm

I am new here and thank you for accepting me into the group. Though I am an Omega owner of a Geneva Automatic from 1974, that is not why I am here. If someone could help me identify the following watch maker that would be great. This is a watch my father took from a German soldier in 1945. I am trying to find out as much about it as I can. We hope to be returning it to Germany. A long shot would be to find the original recipients family, it was a 25 year dedication for work at the Reinische Nadlefabrik in Aachen. Next would be the archival display at Rhein-Nadel-Automation (RNA) factory or the Peace Museum in Remagen.

Canuck · Tues. 9:28pm

RCHill
I am new here and thank you for accepting me into the group. Though I am an Omega owner of a Geneva Automatic from 1974, that is not why I am here. If someone could help me identify the following watch maker that would be great. This is a watch my father took from a German soldier in 1945. I am trying to find out as much about it as I can. We hope to be returning it to Germany. A long shot would be to find the original recipients family, it was a 25 year dedication for work at the Reinische Nadlefabrik in Aachen. Next would be the archival display at Rhein-Nadel-Automation (RNA) factory or the Peace Museum in Remagen.

I am no help in trying to identify the maker of the watch movement without a trade mark. There might be a trade mark under the dial. The watch has a cylinder escapement, and it is pin set. Depress the button on the case edge to engage the setting. The markings inside the case appear to contain the case makers trade mark. I tried to identify it, but no joy. I can comment on the lanyard. It is made of human hair! Perhaps made after the death of someone close. This was common in the 19th century. Search for human hair jewellery for an idea of what the fashion was all about.

RCHill · Tues. 9:38pm

Thanks Canuck,all my AI efforts have retuned the same results. I foolishly left the watch in Germany thinking I was being smart but am now regretting it. It is in safe hands I just can not get to it for about a year now to inspect it any more. So these are all the pics I have. I knew about the hair chain. It was common also for women to sell their hair for this purpose. There is no way of knowing at this point if it was a family members, a friends or a commercially produced one. I was hoping someone can ID the WM and from there narrow down who the maker might be. Then I could get further down the rabbit hole. Thanks again.

Canuck · Tues. 9:46pm

There is often a problem in trying to identify 19th century Swiss watches. Watchmaking was often based on a craft or cottage industry system. One person making pinions, someone else cutting gears. Flat steel parts often someone else. Escapents by someone else. And so it goes. All these parts went to an assembler who produced a running watch. Who was the maker? The movement was likely not produced entirely in a factory.

RCHill · Tues. 9:59pm

Canuck
There is often a problem in trying to identify 19th century Swiss watches. Watchmaking was often based on a craft or cottage industry system. One person making pinions, someone else cutting gears. Flat steel parts often someone else. Escapents by someone else. And so it goes. All these parts went to an assembler who produced a running watch. Who was the maker? The movement was likely not produced entirely in a factory.

Thanks again. I have made contact with RNA which is the company that few from the original company. They are doing som research to see if they have records. Googles AI dated it to be around 1927-37 I believe.

Canuck · Tues. 10:26pm

Shows you how much AI knows. This watch is a lot older than they estimate, in my opinion. I very much doubt that the Swiss were producing watches with cylinder escapement and pin setting after the end of the 19th century.

WWII 25 year anniversary Pocket watch

RCHill

Canuck

RCHill

Canuck

RCHill

Canuck

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