Pocket watch – Easily fits in your pocket.
A metal chain is used to anchor the watch in the person’s belt loop, waistcoat or lapel. It is then put inside a small pocket, usually in the waistcoat (during the old days). Fobs are the names of the chains, which connect the pocket watch to the individual’s apparel.The discovery of spring technology gave birth to the pocket watch. Peter Henlein was one of the people who made use of spring technology to make a portable timepiece. Spiral springs were used to make the timepiece move. Although, highly inaccurate at first, corrections were made and accuracy or something close to it was achieved. There are two kinds of pocket watches, the open faced pocket watch and the hunter cased pocket watch. The former is, as the name suggests, open, with no covering. The latter has a hinged cover which protects the face of the pocket watch and the crystal covering.
The demand for pocket watches rose during the later half of the 19th century. This was due to the construction of the railroad. To avoid the likelihood of accidents during the construction of a railroad, workers were compelled to use the pocket watch to accurately tell the time of a train’s departure or arrival. It was also the construction of the railroad which prompted the codified standards for railroad grade pocket watches. These standards were mainly to keep the pocket watches in time.
The pocket watch lost its popularity around the time of World War I. Before this, wristwatches have already come out but they were considered a feminine accessory and were seldom seen worn by men. It was not until the soldiers and officers in the war found it more convenient to wear a wristwatch that the pocket watch popularity declined. Precious seconds were lost trying to get a pocket watch out of the pocket instead of just turning the wrist. Despite this, pocket watches were still used in the railroad circuit during that time.
Until now, pocket watches are still in demand for certain people. Some like the idea of having a traditional pocket watch while others are avid collectors of vintage pocket watches. Vintage pocket watches fetch high prices especially to collectors. The state of a pocket watch and the time it was made are factors to how high the price may go.
