Antique Silver Fob Watch, J Rotherham & Son, 1907

Antique silver fob watch, J Rotherham & Son, 1907.

Although this is a conventional fob watch, around this time, ladies were starting to wear these as very early wrist watches, in a specially made leather holder which fitted onto the wrist (as shown on the photo).

Rotherham & Son evolved from S Vale who were established in 1747. To begin with, the company bought in ebauché (or blank movements) but in the latter part of the 19th Century they began to manufacture their own movements. By the late 1880s, they were considered to be an important Coventry watch manufacturer producing 100 units a week. 

The company continued to grow and it is estimated that they manufactured some 600,000 movements between 1880 and 1930. While not as prolific as some of the big Swiss and American factories, such as Waltham who produced 26 million in the same period, they were still considered to be among the best English “volume” maker. 

Rotherhams later diversified into cycle and automobile parts and watch manufacturing ceased in the 1930s.  

This particular watch has a ¾ plate stem-winding movement which is working nicely. The movement is protected by an inner hinged cover upon which is an inscription, 'A birthday present from her father, 1908'.

The watch itself measures 36mm diameter excluding the winding stem and the loop. The case is silver and there are hallmarks inside both of the case backs for Birmingham 1907 with a maker's mark for J Rotherham & Son. The case is in good condition, just a small minor “ding” to the back. The case back has the recipient's initials.

The watch glass looks good to the naked eye... if viewed through a loupe, a light scratch is visible.

The white enamel dial has a faint hairline running from the sub seconds dial to number and number 1. Pin set blued steel hands, sub seconds at 3 o'clock, and an outer minute track.

The watch will be sent in a new presentation box.

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All of our watches are checked over before listing, and are also checked for accuracy which is usually within around +/- two to three minutes over 24 hours (unless otherwise stated), which is considered respectable for a vintage watch.

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