Hello Mario,
Thank you for sending in this gold pocket watch to mearto.com for a fair market appraisal. I shall try to help you with that today. Remember, we only provide fair market values as if sold on the watch market. We do not provide prices if you sell it on the gold market which destroys the watch.
TITLE:
Gent’s, 14k yellow gold, pendant wound and pendant set, Art Deco era, 24-hour open face, ‘Chronometre’ pocket watch, made by the Elly Watch Co., Ébauches S.A. also known as Buser Freres & Company (aka in 1916 as the Nidor Watch Company), Niederdorf & Basel, Switzerland, circa 1920-1940.
PROVENANCE:
My Grandfather's Watch.
DESCRIPTION:
Case: 50 mm diameter, 14k yellow gold, three leaf, open face pocket watch with LINEAR guilloche striping on the back cover which has a central rectangular cameo for the owner’s initials (left blank). The gold fluted coin shaped pendant and embossed shaped bow are placed at the twelve-position relative to the dial. The interior of the back cover carries the Swiss hallmark for 14k gold, the squirrel, and inside of a shield shaped cameo, the number 56. The shield contains, “56, 14K, 0.585” and this designation was used on Swiss made watches mainly exported to places like Russia and the eastern European countries. The case number is noted as 233863 (this is not the serial number which would have been on the movement) . . .
Dial: A round silvered dial with guilloche cross-hatched textured dial plate with applied brass/gilt upright Arabic Breguet style hours (1-12), pique dotted minute track to the outside with an enameled second hour chapter (13-24) placed in Arabic numerals every five minutes around the circumference of the dial. There is a sunken subsidiary seconds' dial @6 and gilt skeletonized Antique Breguet hands. The upper dial center is marked “Chronometre, Elly Watch Company” . . . .
Movement: A matte nickel bridge plate movement with three quarter split plate and on small finger bridge. The plate has exposed ratchet and crown wheels with the ratchet wheel bearing the name of the maker, NIDOR with three stars. The movement is pendant wound and pendant set, fully jeweled, bimetallic temperature compensation balance with Swiss made index regulator marked in both English and French initials for faster and slower. The movement is otherwise unsigned and has a Swiss made micro regulator. unsigned. Franca was another trademark name for Buser Freres & company founded by Albert Buser in 1916, in much the same way that Nidor is used on this particular movement. . .
CONDITION:
Case – Moderate scratches and moderate wear to the case.
Dial – Good with black oxidation primarily inside some of the numerals.
Movement – Clean and in very good condition, but does not appear to be of chronometre quality. Many of the small Swiss companies used the term chronometre as a form of advertisement rather than the name being indicative of a true chronometre.
COMPARABLES:
https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/18083181_elly-watch-co-a-slim-1920-s-silver-coloured-pocke (Similar but not in a gold case. Sold in 2013 for $70)
https://www.barnebys.com/realized-prices/lot/nidor-rose-gold-plated-pocket-watch-3wRKhZx6zA (Nidor rose gold plated watch sold for $30 in 2018)
https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/45870177_a-14k-gold-movado-pocket-watch
(Similar Movado watch in 14K white gold sold for $550)
https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/36950206_14k-omega-swiss-art-deco-pocket-watch-17-jewel (14k gold Art Deco pocket watch made by Omega sold for $350)
https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/53360233_ch-meylan-14k-yellow-gold-pocket-watch (14K gold Art Deco Meylan pocket watch sold for $400)
https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/60847868_1950-zenith-14k-49mm-deco-shell-swiss-pocket-watch (14k gold hunting case pocket watch by Zenith sold in 2018 for $700.)
PRICING:
In today’s watch market the condition of the watch case, dial and movement means a good deal, and the brand name also affects the price. The Elly Watch Company IS NOT a major name in Swiss watches and that reduces the value a bit. Still, this is a handsome solid gold Art Deco era watch which should bring a fair market price at auction in the range of $200-$250. Assuming that the handsome gold watch chain is 14k gold as well – I will add another $200 for the watch chain. Total fair market value would be in the range of $400-$450
I hope that helps you to understand the nature of your watch and its approximate fair market value. Retail values will be somewhat higher, perhaps twice the fair market price. Thank you for choosing mearto.com for this appraisal.
I hope that is helpful to you.
My best,
David