Collectable Pocket Watches
Although all pocket watches are beautiful pieces of handicraft there are certainly some types and brands that are far more popular than others.
Antique Pocket Watches are very collectable types of pocket watches and we have dedicated a page to them here.
While some collectors prefer to stick with one company, time-period or design, others will invest in designs that appeal aesthetically or which hold physical value (weight in silver or gold, for instance).
If you are considering becoming a pocket watch collector there are a few key types of pocket-watch that you may want to think about investing in, though it is important that you remember that these types are much desired by other collectors and often fetch incredibly high prices at auction or from dealers.
One of the most popular types of collectable pocket watch is the ''railroader''s watch'', the type released by a few British and American companies in the nineteenth century to coincide with the railroad companies'' regulations regarding pocket-watch accuracy and design.
Perhaps the most desired are those watches released by the Waltham Watch Company, though Elgin, Illinois, E. Howard, Hamilton and Ball Watch Companies are also incredibly popular.
All of these watches should be clearly stamped with their manufacturers hallmark and will likely include a serial number somewhere in their casing. These serial numbers are unique to each individual watch and help determine their release date and origin as well as their genuineness.
Modern watch-makers versions of pocket-watches are also popular, in part because of their success as brands but also because of their craftsmanship and inherent physical value. Patek Phillipe, Mount Royal, Rolex and Studebaker are all well known brands within the watch-making industry and any pocket-watches made by these companies will fetch high prices.
Another modern watch design of interest to some collectors are the Disney character pocket watches (Mickey Mouse being the favourite), which were released in the 1950s and 1960s and which now feature regularly in auctions.