Stauffer, Son & Co. 18K Gold Split-Seconds Chronograph Pocket Watch c.1890s | 60-Minute Register

Details:

MAKE

Manufacturer: Stauffer, Son & Co.
Model: Split Second Chronograph
Country: Switzerland
Type: Man’s
Serial #: 250831
Circa Date: 1890s

CASE

Size: 51mm.

Style: Open Face.

Material: 18K Yellow Gold.

Decorations:  Plain.

Weighs:  75.7 DWTS

Conditions:  C  3  (The case is in Very Good condition)

DIAL

Color: White.

Type: Double sunk porcelain dial.

Numerals: Roman Numerals.

Hands: Spade Hands.

Conditions:  D  2  (The dial is in Perfect condition)

MOVEMENT

Jewels: 21 Jewels.

Setting: Pin Set. --->> Learn more about pin-set watches

Escapement: Lever Escapement.

Material: Gilt.

Layout: ¾-Plate Layout.

Signed:  Yes.

Conditions:  M  3  (The movement is in Very Good condition)

Condition

This Stauffer, Son & Co. split-seconds chronograph remains in very good antique condition.

• Substantial solid 18K yellow gold case remains in very good condition.
• Complete watch weighs approximately 117.7 grams total weight.
• White double-sunk porcelain dial is in perfect condition.
• Signed 21 jewel gilt movement remains in very good condition.
• Split-seconds chronograph and 60-minute register provide an unusually sophisticated complication for a nineteenth-century pocket watch.
• Please review all photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the description and accurately represent the watch's condition.

The split-seconds chronograph, also known as a rattrapante, is considerably more sophisticated than a conventional chronograph. Its additional seconds hand allows the timing of intermediate or simultaneous events while the primary chronograph continues to run. Incorporating this mechanism into a pocket watch required considerable skill and precision, making surviving nineteenth-century examples particularly interesting to collectors of complicated watches.

Adding further functionality is the 60-minute chronograph register, allowing elapsed time to be recorded beyond the brief intervals measured by simpler chronographs of the period.

The watch is housed in a substantial 51mm open-face case crafted from solid 18K yellow gold. Its restrained plain finish allows the rich color of the gold and impressive proportions of the watch to take center stage. The complete watch weighs 75.7 pennyweights (approximately 117.7 grams total weight), giving it an impressive presence in the hand.

The beautiful white double-sunk porcelain dial remains in perfect condition. Classic Roman numerals and elegant spade hands provide a traditional appearance, while the chronograph indications and 60-minute register reveal the considerably more sophisticated mechanism beneath the dial.

Powering the watch is a signed 21 jewel gilt movement constructed in a traditional ¾-plate layout. The movement incorporates a lever escapement and pin-set (Learn more about Pin Set Pocket Watches) mechanism and remains in very good condition. Its elaborate split-seconds chronograph works demonstrate the technical sophistication required to produce a high-grade complicated watch during the late nineteenth century.

With its combination of a split-seconds chronograph, 60-minute register, 21 jewel movement, perfect porcelain dial, substantial 18K gold case, and Stauffer, Son & Co. name, this is an outstanding complicated pocket watch worthy of an advanced collection.

What Is a Split-Seconds Chronograph?

A split-seconds chronograph, traditionally called a rattrapante, is one of the more sophisticated forms of mechanical chronograph.

Unlike a standard chronograph with a single timing seconds hand, a split-seconds mechanism incorporates two superimposed chronograph seconds hands. During timing, the hands begin together. One can be stopped independently to record an intermediate time while the other continues measuring the event. The stopped hand can then be released to catch up with—or rattraper—the moving hand.

This makes it possible to measure such things as intermediate times, multiple competitors, or two events beginning simultaneously but ending at different times.

The additional gearing, levers, and controls required to accomplish this make a split-seconds mechanism significantly more complicated to construct than a conventional chronograph. In a pocket watch dating to the 1890s, it represents an especially impressive achievement in precision mechanical watchmaking.

Why Collect Stauffer, Son & Co.?

Stauffer, Son & Co. is an important name in the history of Swiss watchmaking, particularly among collectors of high-quality nineteenth and early twentieth-century watches. The firm became known for supplying finely made Swiss watches and movements to important international markets, with especially strong historical connections to the British watch trade.

While conventional Stauffer pocket watches are collectible in their own right, complicated examples such as this split-seconds chronograph occupy a considerably different level of horological interest.

This watch brings together many of the features advanced collectors seek: a rattrapante chronograph, 60-minute register, 21 jewel signed movement, perfect double-sunk porcelain dial, and a large solid 18K yellow gold case.

More than simply a precious-metal pocket watch, it is an impressive example of the mechanical ingenuity achieved by Swiss watchmakers during the closing years of the nineteenth century.