I'm At It Again, Trying To Buy A Little Time ..

I’m not actually trying to buy myself TIME but rather TIME PIECES! Maybe I should have stayed away from the stretch of the truth in the title of my post, but I just couldn't help it. Really though, I’m buying a piece of time and enjoying every second of it.

On My Day Off ..

You may recall that in a recent post I spoke about taking some time off last week on Friday. I had a few personal errands to run and also I took some time to stop in at a few antique stores close by. It was a nice day and a nice ride up to the antique store. this particular store is one of those that has many vendors selling their products in one warehouse on a commission basis. The owners of the warehouse take a small commission for housing the vendors items and transacting their purchases. I had a blast spending about two hours rummaging through everyone’s booths. I found lots of things I could’ve walked away with but I decided just to leave them there because I have enough stuff at my house already. But I did find "Something"!

Maybe I should say I found "Some Things"

I found three "Somethings" to be exact.

I found three pocket watches and decided to purchase them.

I observed a couple of other specimens at this particular antique store, but they were either overpriced or in awful shape. There was this one particular booth that was in my opinion kind of cluttered. He had a bunch of those locked glass cases which I had to find an attendant to open for me. That was a whole process in itself since there were only two people working and the store was considerably crowded. The young lady eventually came with a key and opened the cases and allowed me to pick out five different pocket watches.

After thoroughly examining each piece I decided to purchase three out of the five that I found. I spent approximately 50 USD dollars on these three time pieces. I consider this a phenomenal deal since most pocket watches in this condition are going for anywhere between $40 and $200 on eBay, regardless whether or not they are running. There seems to be a pocket watch craze occurring these days.

Two out of the three watches run. The larger Elgin watch actually keeps pretty good time and runs fairly smoothly. The little Elgin, runs but is a little bit slow on time. And the middle sized watch doesn’t run at all. I don’t really care that it was working or not and I’ll tell you why down below.

THE SILVER!

1950's Geneve ..

Let’s start first with this Small Victorian style, ladies pocket watch. This is the watch that does not run. I didn’t purchase this watch because of the shape the actual movement was in, but for the case. Upon closer inspection I took a shot and decided that the case might be at least 80% silver. At the time I was inspecting it in the store, I couldn't tell , but decided to buy it anyway because I was about 75% sure it may be silver. After getting the piece home I did end up testing it and in fact it is silver. I’m still not sure whether it’s 80% or 90% but I’m relatively sure that it’s 80% pure (given some light research).

The pocket watch also has a cute design on its rear face. A small colorful bird perched on a limb with blue flowers. I always find it interesting when there are watches with painted designs on them. I’m sort of drawn to them and this one is not overpowering. The design doesn’t take up the entire back side of the watch but rather just add a little bit of detail to an otherwise plain silver backing. The watch also has a lot of nice patina that has developed over the years. Not sure when the last time this watch was cleaned.

I’ll play around with it a little but I doubt I will get it started and running. I may even have a size 6 watch that will fit this case, but it may not be even worth me messing around with trying to swap movements. I’ll probably end up selling this and I stand to make a decent little profit from it since I only paid about 15 dollars for this piece.

1921 Elgin Grade 303

This 1921 Elgin time movement runs decently, but could use a little TLC for smoother function. The time peace is not in bad shape considering it’s just over 100 years old. The face of the movement is in great shape. The outer cover has not been worn down or dropped that I can see, the porcelain face only has a slight crack running from the number 2 toward the center of the movement. The hands are in good shape as well.

The watch case is manufactured by CWC company and is gold plated, not solid gold. Sorry to disappoint! It’s a pretty yet simple case. The backside does contain some scratches but I believe these can be easily polished out. This particular watch was also monogrammed with the letters M.G.A. I think a monogram gives a watch some character and life, otherwise the backside would be relatively boring and the watch would have limited history to it. I can only imagine the person with those initials and how they enjoyed this time peace for many years. I kind of wish I had more than just the initials as history to this watch. I guess my imagination will just have to create a story for my own pleasure.

It’s always a cool feeling when you pop open the rear cover and get a look at those delicate and intricate gears. The subtle yet precise clicking always brings a smile to my face when I sit and listen to it's soothing rhythm. This is a really pretty designed movement, and one that I will love having in my collection. I don’t plan on parting with this one anytime soon.

Additional Info On This Movement

THE GOLD!???

1921 Elgin Grade 430

This little ladies gem of a watch will have to wait for official testing. I tried using my acid tests and I believe that they are weakening and I need new acid. I couldn’t get a definitive answer but it appears that it may be a 14K case. Once my new acid arrives then I’ll have my answer. Or I can take it somewhere and get it tested but not for the size this is it wouldn’t be worth it. The case may weight around 3 to 4 grams (and if 14K - $100+/-USD melt value worth of the gold stuff)I did only pay $15 for this watch so if it is 14K gold then I really lucked out. (NOT holding my breath) If not then I’m no worse for wear and I can actually sell this wonderful little piece for about $30-$40 estimation. It runs perfectly and it’s just missing a necklace that would have held it around the neck of the young lady. I have a couple of those and I may just put it with this for display.

The case has a simple repeating design around the outside edge that gives it a more Victorian style look. The movement face is a light gold shade with black numbers and hands. The back of the movement is also monogrammed with a bunch of squiggly letters that I really can’t tell what they are. Maybe you can help me out! L L G??? Not sure.

This is a tiny movement at size 0 but it functions like the big boys. It runs smooth and keeps pretty decent time. I wish the watchcase had some markings on it to tell me exactly who manufactured it, but it looks like I’m going to have to do some research. That’s part of the fun in owning these old gals.

Additional Info On This Movement

I wasn't able to buy any time, but I did buy a few nice Time Pieces to add to my growing collection.

And I'm Satisfied With That.

The Backdrop For My Photo's ..

Some of you may be wondering about the backdrop I am using for my photos today. This piece of old paper is actually A basic land survey that was drawn up on February 17, 1756. If my math is correct that is 266 years ago. It’s also kind of cool that we were getting pretty close to American independence around this time period. I thought the old feel and look to the paper and fancy writing complemented these watches although they are nowhere near as old as this piece of paper. It’s interesting how the survey itself is relatively minimal but it does include a small stream cutting through the bottom left-hand corner of the property. You can give it a try and zoom in and read the calligraphy style wording. It basically states that 100 acres of land was transferred from one person to another and contained sand and swamp. At least that’s my interpretation.

I have several such pieces of antique documents in my collection, but this little one is kind of unique due to the drawing on it. Maybe I'll share a few others with you at a later date.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

Thank you for swinging by my blog and checking out the post. Have a great day!

All words, pictures and art pieces are the sole property of B D Miller Gallery, unless otherwise noted and credited, and are not to be reproduced or copied without the prior written consent of B D Miller Gallery.

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This blog post is not meant as financial advice. I'm not a certified financial planner/advisor nor a certified financial analyst nor an economist nor a CPA nor an accountant nor a lawyer. Conduct your own due diligence, or consult a licensed financial advisor or broker before making any and all investment decisions.