United Kingdom. A Diplomatic Presentation Pocket Watch, c.1885

The body of this pocket watch is .935 silver, non-magnetic, non-functional and weighing 112 grams. The white porcelain face has bold Roman numerals in black, with a ring above marked with black rules in intervals of sixty minutes, the watch with steel blue hour and minute hands. The "III" (3) position is obscured by the inset second hand clock with a black secondhand and incorporates a glass crystal. The obverse exterior cover illustrates the Royal coat-of-arms surmounted by the Victorian crown. The underside of the obverse exterior cover is marked "S.O", number impressed "60223", stamped "0.935" (935 out of the 1000 parts pure silver), Swiss hallmarked with a bear within a shield, with two individual bear hallmarks below and maker marked with a capital "H". The back cover has two concentric circles in the centre, with multiple rays and rules emanating from them, the outer edge with a beaded border. The underside of both the reverse exterior cover and the reverse interior cover display the same marks as those used on the underside of the obverse exterior cover. The inside works is marked on the plate "COMPENSATING BALANCE", "THE MERIDIAN", "SWISS MADE" and "ADJUSTED", along with being marked on a bar with an "F" and an "S" flanking a downward pointing arrow. It also comes with a reeded brass ball finial stem and a silver ring suspension, the watch measuring 51.5 mm (w) x 66 mm (h) inclusive of its stem x 14 mm (d). It exhibits light surface wear on the coat-of-arms, the glass crystal with very light contact. Near extremely fine.