Vintage Open Face Watch
These vintage open face watch pieces offer classic timekeeping in pocket formats, spanning Edwardian to Art Deco styles.
Vintage Open Face Watch
A vintage open face watch provides portable timekeeping without a protective metal cover over the dial, making it straightforward to check the hour at a glance. When exploring a vintage open face watch on this page, buyers encounter pocket watches originating from the Edwardian, Art Deco, and Victorian periods.
The selections include silver, brass, steel, and gold plate variations, frequently accompanied by chains or albert attachments. Pieces range from standard pocket models to larger goliath designs suited for desk or travel use.
How they were made
Cased components are assembled to hold lever escapements and specialised movements, including eight-day variants produced by makers of the era.
Vintage Open Face Watch Retail Price Guide 2026
Typical asking prices for vintage open face watch among the pieces listed under this phrase on Sellingantiques today, from the lower quarter to the upper quarter. They describe what is for sale here now, not the wider market.
Listings include silver, brass, steel, gold plate, nickel silver, and rolled gold materials across Edwardian, Art Deco, and Victorian styles.
What varies in quality
Differences in quality emerge through the choice of casing material, moving from nickel silver and brass up to solid silver and gold plate. The inclusion of original chains or albert attachments elevates the completeness of a piece.
The presence of specialised movements, such as eight-day power reserves or named lever mechanisms, distinguishes standard utility timepieces from more accomplished examples.
Record·Omega·Octava·Acme Lever·Everite·Phoenix Indestructible·Pioneer
The Vintage Open Face Watch Glossary
- Open face
- A watch design where the dial is exposed directly beneath the glass without a hinged metal front cover.
- Albert
- A type of watch chain attached to a pocket watch, named after Prince Albert.
- Lever
- An escapement mechanism used in mechanical watches to regulate the release of power to the gear train.
- Goliath
- An oversized pocket watch, often larger than standard models, produced around the turn of the twentieth century for travel or desk placement.
Vintage Open Face Watch: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a vintage open face watch?
A vintage open face watch is a pocket timepiece that lacks a hinged metal cover over the crystal, allowing immediate viewing of the dial.
These pieces date across the Edwardian, Art Deco, and Victorian periods in various metals.
How do you wear an open face watch?
These watches attach to clothing via an albert chain or standard pocket chain secured to a buttonhole or waistcoat pocket.
The chain keeps the watch secure while allowing it to be drawn out for reading the time.
What are goliath pocket watches?
Goliath watches are significantly larger pocket watches produced around nineteen hundred, designed primarily for travel use or desk placement.
They require sturdier stands or specialised larger pockets due to their substantial dimensions.
What materials were used for these watches?
Casings are constructed from materials including silver, brass, steel, nickel silver, rolled gold, and gold plate.
Dials feature glass and enamel surfaces to protect the hands and markings.