A Geneva Pocket Watch - December 1938

In December 1938, as Europe stood unknowingly on the threshold of enormous change, this remarkable thin 18 - karat solid gold pocket watch was presented to it's original owner. More than eight decades later, it survives as not merely as a fine Swiss timepiece, but as a small and remarkable personal witness to history.

Opening the case reveals the real character of this watch: an exceptionally thin Swiss movement displaying the elegant engineering for which Geneva watchmaking became renowned. It's bridges, wheels and regulator survive remarkably well, offering a glimpse into the craftmanship hidden inside this modestly sizes timepiece.

The inside of the case provides some of the watch's most important clues. The case is fashioned in 18 - karat gold an bears Swiss markings that help establish its origin and standard of fineness. Alongside these official marks is a beautiful engraved presentation inscription dated December 1938 - transforming the watch from an anonymous object into something connected to a particular moment in time

Presented to its original owner in December of 1938, this watch carries something that cannot be measured in karats or millimeters - provenance.

The engraved inscription fixes it to a particular moment, just a s Europe was approaching one of the defining periods of the twentieth century. More than eight decades later, the watch survives remarkably intact: movement, case, inscription and history together

Object such as this remind us why we collect. Sometimes the smallest things become witness to the largest stories