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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Pocket watches · Case

Pair-Cased Watches

Verified

Watches housed in an inner case carrying the movement and an outer protective case, the pair normally hallmarked separately.

Mechanism

A protective strategy against dust and damage in the era before dust covers and tight-fitting bezels.

Typical characteristics

  • Inner case pierced or apertured for winding and sound
  • Outer case frequently of shagreen, tortoiseshell, horn or silver
  • Two sets of hallmarks and casemaker's marks

Identification characteristics

  • Compare hallmarks on inner and outer cases — matching date letters support an original pairing
  • Check that winding apertures align with the movement's winding square

Collector significance

Original pairings are considerably scarcer than the surviving inner cases suggest; many outer cases are later replacements.

Known variations

  • Triple-cased (often for the Ottoman market)
  • Shagreen outer
  • Repoussé outer

Photographs

Silver pair cased watch
Silver pair cased watch — AntiquarianHorologist, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page
Watch (Pair Case Verge Watch) (48709608221)
Watch (Pair Case Verge Watch) (48709608221) — Auckland Museum Collections from Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, CC BY 2.0. Wikimedia Commons file page
Watch (Pair Case Verge Watch) (48709106668)
Watch (Pair Case Verge Watch) (48709106668) — Auckland Museum Collections from Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, CC BY 2.0. Wikimedia Commons file page

Photographs are illustrative examples of the type, not necessarily the exact object described. Verify details against the source file page.

Sources & references

  1. Priestley, P., Watch Case Makers of England

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.