Mike, The mark (which looks like a lyre) is on a Swiss looking mvt (c. 1875-1885 would be my guess). Unfortunately, I don't have a copy of Pritchard handy. watchfriends, Thanks for the pointer. I will check into it. Greg
Greg, Pritchard lists a Lyre trade name but but not a mark. I will look for it if you provide a larger image. Mike
Mike, This image might be clearer:http://members.aol.com/gfrauen/84pw5a.jpg Don't spend too much time on this on my account. It was just an idle interest. Greg
Greg, Found it. The only sure way to find trademarks in Pritchard is to flip thru page by page (potential of 4 inches of pages in the two volumes but this effort was only a few minutes) as marks are not always indexed. If you have access to a copy of the books it is on page G-4 and she devoted 5 pages to this maker. The maker was Gallet & Cie SA of La Chaux de Fonds,New York and Les Brenets. The company was formed in 1826 by Julien Gallet and registered the name of the firm and trademark in 1881 when all Swiss companies were required to register. The original mark is a lyre in a shield with J and G either side. Your mark is a simplification but It is exactly the same as the lyre in the original mark. There are numerous mentions of good production and awards won. Mike
Dear Greg, GALLET and ACHILLE DIDISHEIM took nearly the same symbol! Both symbols look very similar and if you look closer, you see the little differences. The dot in the middle, the drawing line to the foot and the top edges of the lyre to the outside direction. Have a look to: KARL KOCHMANN: Clock & Watch, Trademark Index of European Origins, p.630 Best regards Antonios Vassiliadis ________________________ http://faszination-uhrwerk.argby.com
Antonios, So you believe it is Didisheim? Would that these things were simple! Thanks for the the info, Greg
Greg, to be honest, it´s much more easier to look an enlarged and sharp picture of your symbol. Then it might be identified. Mike does it right also - both symbols are very similar. Let´s have a look to your complete movement. Could be possible, that the movement is from ACHILLE DITISHEIM. But remember, not all swiss companys took their own movements: Ebauches or unfinished movements from third parties were chosen, finished for their own design and quality and sold under their name. If you read this book of KARL KOCHMANN, you understand if you have a choice of over 35.000 different European symbols.... Yours sincerely Antonios
Here's a view of the mvt: http://members.aol.com/gfrauen/84pw30.jpg It's very similar to watchfriends, but without the exposed winding wheels. The small metal piece held to the plate with two screws has nothing underneath. Could this have been a name plate of some kind, but one that wasn't engraved?
Hello Greg, it seems that watchfriends was from the beginning right with ACHILLE DITISHEIM. Unfortunately I haven´t got any pictures nor material catalogue informations for proving a ACHILLE DITISHEIM movement as Kathleen H.Pritchard´s and Karl Kochmann´s books. These important books are my only source for this company. My best regards Antonios
Hello Greg, it seems that watchfriends was from the beginning right with ACHILLE DITISHEIM. Unfortunately I haven´t got any pictures nor material catalogue informations for proving a ACHILLE DITISHEIM movement as Kathleen H.Pritchard´s and Karl Kochmann´s books. These important books are my only source for this company. The plate might be also a place for engravings, yes. My best regards Antonios
Greg, I still think there is a good chance this watch is by Gallet but then I have not seen the other mark and it is not listed for Didisheim by Pritchard. In any event, I note that most of the Gallet tradenames were directed at the US market and the movements were designed for US cases. What size case fits your watch? Mike
