Niello cases by Keystone

[Jerry Treiman]

Niello work has been beautifully applied to many watch cases, and was particularly popular with Swiss watches from around the turn of the last century. Few people are aware that there was also limited production of niello cases in the United States. The only examples with which I am familiar are from the Keystone Watch Case Co. In the words of a 1901 ad from the Keystone Watch Case Co., "Niello is a jet-black lustrous compound -- an artificial metal. In the now well-known Niello watch cases the ornamentation is produced by cutting an artistic design into the silver on backs and centers, and filling in the space where the silver is removed with Niello." The niello material itself is "a soft grey enamel made from lead, silver, copper, borax and sulphur” [Britten's Watch & Clock Maker's Handbook, Dictionary and Guide, 16th edition (1978)]

The following images show two 12-size niello-cased watches.
http://www.nawcc-info.org/JT028niello_e_small.jpg (http://www.nawcc-info.org/Treiman/JT028niello_e.jpg) http://www.nawcc-info.org/JT029niello_w_small.jpg (http://www.nawcc-info.org/Treiman/JT029niello_w.jpg)
That these cases were rather special is indicated by the different pattern and construction of each (even though they are only 13 apart in serial number) as well as the custom factory-done monograms. I have also seen one 16-size hunting case on an Illinois watch.

[This message was edited by Jerry Treiman on January 24, 2003 at 1:57.]

[Jerry Treiman]

Niello work has been beautifully applied to many watch cases, and was particularly popular with Swiss watches from around the turn of the last century. Few people are aware that there was also limited production of niello cases in the United States. The only examples with which I am familiar are from the Keystone Watch Case Co. In the words of a 1901 ad from the Keystone Watch Case Co., "Niello is a jet-black lustrous compound -- an artificial metal. In the now well-known Niello watch cases the ornamentation is produced by cutting an artistic design into the silver on backs and centers, and filling in the space where the silver is removed with Niello." The niello material itself is "a soft grey enamel made from lead, silver, copper, borax and sulphur” [Britten's Watch & Clock Maker's Handbook, Dictionary and Guide, 16th edition (1978)]

The following images show two 12-size niello-cased watches.
http://www.nawcc-info.org/JT028niello_e_small.jpg (http://www.nawcc-info.org/Treiman/JT028niello_e.jpg) http://www.nawcc-info.org/JT029niello_w_small.jpg (http://www.nawcc-info.org/Treiman/JT029niello_w.jpg)
That these cases were rather special is indicated by the different pattern and construction of each (even though they are only 13 apart in serial number) as well as the custom factory-done monograms. I have also seen one 16-size hunting case on an Illinois watch.

[This message was edited by Jerry Treiman on January 24, 2003 at 1:57.]

[Lindell V. Riddle]

Jerry,

Niello cases are seldom seen and very beautiful! You found the Keystone ad from 1901 and do you have any idea how long Keystone marketed Niello style cases? I get the impression it was for a very short period of time.

There's a great February 2001 NAWCC Bulletin article titled "The Niello Watch Case, Artistry in Time" by NAWCC Member James F. Wolf who is well-known for his association with Ashland Investments and the Shugart Watch Book.

The well-written article is featured in color on the cover, is well illustrated with many examples and contains a wealth of information. Jim mentions that Niellos started around 1900 and continued in small numbers until the onset of the Great Depression in 1929. So from that it would appear you have two very early Niello cases.

I urge those reading this to "double-click" on each of Jerry's pictures and see them fill your screen with their beautiful detail.

Thanks for showing these examples.


Lindell V. Riddle

[Spike]

Jerry says "Niello is a jet-black lustrous compound -- an artificial metal. In the now well-known Niello watch cases the ornamentation is produced by cutting an artistic design into the silver on backs and centers, and filling in the space where the silver is removed with Niello." The niello material itself is "a soft grey enamel made from lead, silver, copper, borax and sulphur? (bold added for emphasis)

I'm confused-- is niello the black part or the grey part?

If the grey part is niello, how was the silver darkened?

[Tom McIntyre]

Niello is black. It is really a very dark grey. :wink: Britten must have had a very good eye for color contrast.

If one were to polish the case, the Niello would still be black and the silver would be bright. The silver and sulfur content of the Niello causes it to bond with the case material much more than ordinary glass based enamels. You might think of it as a black silver alloy and not be really far off.

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Tom McIntyre
NAWCC 2nd VP Candidate
Tommy the JOAT's Web (http://www.AWCo.org)