Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany began as a retailer of various fancy goods and was founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany, with the backing of his father, in 1837 in New York City. The store sold a wide variety of items as “Tiffany, Young and Ellis”, however the name was shortened to Tiffany & Company in 1853 when Charles Tiffany took control and established the firm’s emphasis on jewellery. Ever since 1851, when Antoine Norbert de Patek visited Charles Lewis Tiffany, looking for a retailer for his timepieces, there has been a co-operation between Tiffany and Patek Philippe.
The range was expanded to include silver goods and watches, among other things. In 1845, high-priced jewellery was added and the now famous Blue Book, an order catalogue, was launched. Trading in diamonds and Swiss watches began in 1848, and Tiffany then made gold jewellery for the first time.
Description
A rare, oval-cased original and unrestored 1960s, 18ct pink gold Tiffany watch with a beautiful silver-grey dial which has a very subtle horizontal grain. This watch was commissioned by Tiffany & Co. and features a high quality Eska Watch Co movement. Relatively few oval shaped Tiffany watches have been produced and therefore these case shapes are more exclusive. At 23mm across, excluding the original unsigned crown, this is a good-sized Ladies Tiffany dress watch for the period.
The Dial
This is an outstanding dial, simple, elegant, and just right. Something many contemporary watch dials fail to achieve. This wonderful silver-grey dial has a very subtle horizontal grain and carries a mixture of ‘arrowhead’ hour indices with ‘baton’ hour indices at ‘6’ and ‘12’ which are swept by the original ‘dauphine’ hands. This outstanding watch also has the addition of a subsidiary seconds dial at ‘6’. All of these beautiful aspects on the stunning unrestored silver dial give the watch style and perfect presence.
The dial is simply signed ‘Tiffany & Co’ just below 12.
This dial is in original and unrestored and has been left untouched by our restoration team due to its superb condition. Usually, we restore the dials of the watches we sell, however we decided in this case to leave it alone, due to its unusually good condition and to retain its originality and charm for those who prefer this. It also helps to contrast with almost all of the other watch dials you see on our website, which have been restored. The hands, likewise, have also been left in their original untouched condition.
Please note, studio lights, professional-grade digital cameras, and macro lenses can be very unkind to an unrestored vintage watch dial. Also the dial here measures less than 1.25 inches across, so the image you’re seeing may be between 5 – 25 times larger than the watch itself. Therefore please keep in mind you are seeing many tiny flaws which cannot be seen, or will be very hard to see with the naked eye, even under close examination. Suffice to say, on the wrist, in natural light, this dial looks much better and carries a great deal more charm than the photographs portray.
The Movement
The movement within this watch is the Eska Watch Co, 17 Jewel hand-wound movement which is in sparkling condition and has been fully overhauled and serviced by our vintage specialist watchmaker. The movement has been completely disassembled, cleaned, inspected and rebuilt using only the correct original parts where required and after careful calibration and testing, the. watch is now running to within +10 seconds per day which is outstanding for any vintage watch of this age.
This movement is simply signed with ‘Eska Watch Co’, ‘Seventeen Jewels’ and ‘Unadjusted Swiss’
With care and with regular servicing, say every 4 years, we would fully expect this watch to run quite happily for many decades to come. We are therefore more than happy to offer this watch with our 12 months’ warranty* and to assist with servicing again in the future.
*Please note – our 12 months’ warranty is only applicable if the list price is paid.
The Case
This simply wonderful 18ct pink gold oval watch case measures 23mm in diameter, excluding the correct unsigned crown and has beautiful straight lugs. The case is of exceedingly high quality, being constructed in two pieces with a press fit case-back. Due to its sophisticated construction with multiple facets, the watch sits beautifully on the wrist and looks every bit the quality piece it is. The watch case is in tip-top condition with no signs of wear visible to the naked eye.
The interior of the case-back simply carries the correct 18ct gold hallmarks ’18K 0.75′. On the exterior of the case-back all is correct and as expected: signed with ‘Eska’ with the serial number 120440. The case-back is of full thickness and has never been inscribed.
As ever, our standard advice applies: vintage watches should be kept clean and dry at all times.
The Strap and Buckle
The watch is fitted with a high quality brown ostrich strap and plain pink gold-plated buckle which we feel suits the watch perfectly. However, if a different colour or different style of strap is preferred, please let us know and we will do our best to provide your choice, free of charge. We carry tan, conker, dark brown and black in stock in plain padded leather, crocodile skin or lizard skin and can also obtain most types and colours from our partners at ‘Watch Obsession’ within 48hrs. Please take a look at their huge range of straps if you wish here.
Box and Papers
Although there are no original papers with this watch, the reference numbers, markings, signatures and hallmarks are all correct, dating this watch to c1963.
Detailed particulars will be included with our purchase receipt for your interest and security. A separate insurance valuation for the replacement value of this watch will be provided at the time of sale along with our unique ‘Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee’ which states: “If this watch proves to be anything less than 100% genuine, authentic and original, a full refund will be given at any time”.
The presentation box shown in the photographs is included.
Payment and Delivery
If you would like to pay by bank transfer, we will be pleased to assist you with this. Similarly, if you wish to pay by International SWIFT or Bank Wire Transfer we will provide you with our BIC / Swift number and our IBAN number.
Please check the import duties and any taxes your government may apply, these are different for each country and, unfortunately, out of our control.
We understand there may be some ‘loopholes’ that may help you avoid these charges; however, attempting to use these could impact our ongoing ability to serve our growing international customer base.
For those who happen to visit London on occasion, we are, of course, more than happy to store your watch until we can meet you in our offices in Kensington, London, and hand your watch directly to you there.
As with all our watches, this watch will be sold under our 14 days no-quibble sale or return policy.
In Conclusion
This is a first class example of a top quality Tiffany & Co dress watch in 18ct pink gold with a superb Eska 17 jewel hand-wound movement. The movement is of a high grade and on a par with watches far more expensive than this. Tiffany & Co watches are highly collectable and the rarity of this watch means the value will always remain strong.
A word on our prices – We always try our hardest to acquire the very highest quality watches we can find, before restoring them to the highest possible standards. We then offer these at the fairest prices we can, taking into account our pre and post-sales care and service. This approach means we will never be the cheapest, but nor will we be the most expensive. Indeed there are some well-known stores in West London which are highly successful charging between two to three times the price you see here. We, therefore, consider our prices to be fair, given the quality of watches we have to offer.
Please note, we also welcome part exchanges. If you have a watch or a small collection for sale, please contact us as we will be happy to discuss this.
We will also be happy to Service your watch, Repair your watch or Restore your watch, all at ‘sensible’ prices. Please see here.
If you have any questions please call us on 020 7727 7095 or if calling from overseas on +44 207 727 7095.
Please take a look at our other fine vintage gold watches.
Thank you.
Andrew M via feefo 
3rd December 2024 
JLC1891 
