Antique Silver Longines Pocket Watch for J W Benson, with Chain

Antique silver Longines pocket watch for J W Benson, with chain.

The watch has a seven jewel stem-winding movement which is working nicely. The movement is not signed as it would have been made as a private label piece for J W Benson. However, it has been identified as being a Longines piece and this is confirmed by the Longines serial number 2,420,079 which dates it back to 1910.

The movement is protected by an inner cover which has the wording, ‘J W Benson, by Warrant to HM The Late Queen Victoria, 62 & 64 Ludgate Hill, London, Swiss Made’.

The watch measures 48mm diameter excluding the winding stem and the loop. The case is silver and there are hallmarks inside the two case backs for London 1910 together with the AB mark for Arthur Baume, manager of Longines UK, and also the mark for J W Benson. The case has minor mark but overall is in good condition for such an early piece.

The glass lens is in good condition.

The dial has blued steel hands, a subsidiary seconds dial and outer minute markers. There is a hairline running across the dial.

The watch comes with a single silver chain, 35cm long including the T-bar and the chain.

The watch and chain come in a new presentation box.

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 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.

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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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