1897 Presentation LeCoultre Chronograph & Box
Watch
GUEST:
This is actually a pocket watch that was given to my grandfather, who's here in the picture; he's William Butler Ferris. And he was the British consul in Aden, around 1896 timeframe, and when the Italians invaded Abyssinia, it didn't go well for them, and all their prisoners of war were going to be executed, and he helped negotiate their release. And in return for that, the king of Italy authorized this watch to be awarded to him.
APPRAISER:
Quite fantastic-- well, let's go through a little bit about the watch. Fairly nicely engraved, and enameled up, with initials on the front cover. And the initials, uh, read...?
GUEST:
It's William Butler Ferris, W.B.F.
APPRAISER:
This piece is made by a company called LeCoultre, a famous Swiss watchmaking company. One of the interesting aspects about it, it is not only a minute repeater. So it will chime the time to the nearest minute upon request.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
Chimes at the hours, the quarters, and then the minutes.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
This was designed so that you could know the time, um, in the evening or when there was no light available.
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
It also has a chronograph, as well, with a 30-minute recorder. Again, it's quite unusual to have the two complications involved in one watch made by a well-known company. Now, we can see on the reverse here is a presentation inscription in Italian, which I believe you can translate.
GUEST:
I can't translate Italian, but I have a translation I can read.
APPRAISER:
(chuckles)
GUEST:
It says "Gift of him, "Gift of His Majesty the King of Italy's government to Colonel W.B. Ferris, former British consul on the Somali coast, in acknowledgment of thanks for the attention and care towards the Italian P.O.Ws. when they came back from Abyssinia in the year 1897."
APPRAISER:
Right, fantastic. Well, now, the very interesting aspects from my point of view about this pocket watch is not only the condition of the piece, but also the fact that it, it's retained its original box. The box also has quite an unusual feature that enables you, by pulling the cord here, to chime the time while the watch is enclosed in the box. The boxes, uh, very often become separated from the watches, and here, as well, is the original design chain, which is in itself, uh, quite significant and quite heavy. But you mentioned previously that it's not the original chain.
GUEST:
That's correct. My grandfather had to pay for my father and his brothers' public school education, so he sold the chain in, in the '30s. And then my father, when he attained the watch, he went ahead and got-- he went to Asprey's and found the closest they could make as a replacement for it.
APPRAISER:
I, I have to say, they did quite an incredible job. I mean, it fits into the box so well, and really is exactly the type of style that I would expect to see on this type of watch from this period. If it were to be offered for sale in an international auction house, I really believe you'd be looking at a final figure in excess of $20,000 for it.
GUEST:
Wow, that's nice.
APPRAISER:
It's really quite a spectacular example, and really irreplaceable in terms of its history, et cetera, as well.
GUEST:
Oh, well, thank you very much.
APPRAISER:
Thanks for bringing it along today.
GUEST:
My pleasure.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
