Antique Stauffer & Co IWC Pocket Watch, Chain & Compass

The watch has a stem-winding movement which is working nicely. Although Stauffer & Co produced movements in their own right, they also sourced a smaller number of movements from Iwc and possibly from other watch companies. This particular movement has the Stauffer & Co mark, together with the Peerless name which tells us that the movement was made by Iwc (International Watch Company). The movement carries the serial number 179,048 which dates it to the second half of the 1890s The watch measures 50mm diameter excluding the winding stem and the loop. The case is gun metal with gold plated embellishments, and it is in good condition. The inside of the case back also has the mark for François Borgel. He was a very successful inventor and business man, and his company became one of the most important watch case manufacturers of its time. He advertised his screw watch case, such as this example, as "imperméable", which means that he considered his screw case to be waterproof. Early adopters of the Borgel screw case included Longines and Iwc. After François Borgel’s death in 1912, the business was carried on by his daughter Louisa. As with any vintage watch, however, we would not recommend that it is treated as still being waterproof or even water protected. The acrylic lens is in lovely condition (there is reflection in the photos because of the curved lens). The dial has pin set blued steel hands, a subsidiary seconds dial and outer minute markers. There is one visible hairline and three faint short hairlines which are difficult to see with the naked eye. The watch comes with a single chain, 29cm long, and also a fob compass. The watch and chain come in a new presentation box. All prices include UK postage (excluding Northern Ireland). Please contact us before placing international orders so that we can advise of shipping prices and to see if customs regulations allow us to post watches to your country. The international buyer is responsible for paying any import duties and taxes. All of our watches are checked over before listing, and are also checked for accuracy which is usually within around +/- two to three minutes over 24 hours (unless otherwise stated), which is considered respectable for a vintage watch. We are a Vat registered company and all purchases are covered by Consumer Regulations. Credit / debit card purchases can be made over the telephone on 01386 750238 or you can proceed via the red 'Buy Now' button on each listing page. We are an on-line only business and do not have facilities for callers. Our offices are open from Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm. With regards to appraisals / valuations, we receive a huge number of information requests each day and unfortunately do not have the manpower to deal with them all individually. Our advice would be to contact a local auctioneer for a full appraisal.