Silver Full Hunter Cyma Pocket Watch for J W Benson

Silver full hunter Cyma pocket watch for J W Benson.

The watch has a Swiss Cyma 15-jewel movement which is working nicely. The movement carries the Cyma calibre 938a and also the J W Benson name.

Up until the first World War, J W Benson was manufacturing its own movements in the UK but after its factory at Belle Sauvage Yard was hit during a bombing raid in 1914, it purchased mechanisms from a number of quality movement producers in Switzerland, including Cyma.

The movement is protected by an inner hinged cover.

The watch measures 50mm diameter excluding the winding stem and the loop. The case is silver and there are hallmarks inside the three outer covers for London 1937 with a case maker’s mark for J W Benson. There is some unevenness to the front and back covers but not too detrimental.

The winding crown pushes in to open the front cover. Inside, there is an acrylic lens which is in lovely condition.

The dial is signed with the name of the original retailer of the watch, J W Benson, London. It is in very nice condition with blued steel hands, a subsidiary seconds dial and an outer minute track.

J W Benson originated in 1847, founded by James William Benson and Samuel Suckley Benson. They were regarded as one of Victorian London’s most prestigious retail jewellers and they also initially manufactured their own watch movements. The company flourished and proudly boasted an elite client base made up of both British and European royalty and a selection of well heeled industrialists and business figures including the King of Siam, the King of Portugal, the King of Denmark, the Emperor of Japan, the Tsar of Russia and the King of Greece. J W Benson also supplied watches to Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales.

The watch comes in a new presentation box.

ALL PRICES INCLUDE UK POSTAGE (because of GPSR legislation, we no longer post items less than 100 years old to Europe, including Northern Ireland).

Please contact us regarding international shipping.

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.

We are a VAT registered company and all purchases are covered by Consumer Regulations.

Credit / debit card purchases up to £300 can be made over the telephone on 01386 750238 or you can proceed via the 'Purchase Antique' button on each listing page. Alternatively, there is a Paypal payment link if you scroll down the page and we also accept bank transfers.

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With regards to appraisals / valuations, we receive a huge number of information requests each day and unfortunately do not have the manpower to deal with them all individually. Our advice would be to contact a local auctioneer for a full appraisal.