We have a stunning rectangular, sterling silver, Tavannes wristwatch from 1930. Firstly, let's swoon over the original, 93 year old dial. Complete with all Arabic, black numerals, in that classic, Art Deco font, and set just outside the railway-style minute tracking. Blue steel, Breguet hour and minute hands add a stunning contrast to the aged dial. Signed simply 'Tavannes' and complete with a subsidiary seconds dial and blue steel hand at 6 o'clock, this dial has all the best features of a 1930s Deco watch.
The sterling silver case is beautifully engraved around the edge with a scroll motif, typical of the period. Given the age of the watch, the quality of the case and the sharpness of the case work are fantastic. The inside of the case is signed 'Schwob Freres & Co,' who assembled watches from movements, dials and hands etc., largely from Cyma and Tavannes. The rectangular case is a slightly wider size than most Deco watches and this makes the watch perfect for him or her. Inside is the mechanical manual wind, in-house caliber, fully serviced by us and running strongly. We've paired the watch on a brown leather strap, but it looks wonderful dressed up on black too.
Extra Points
Henri Sandoz founded a watch company under his own name in 1870. By 1891, he moved to Tavannes, just outside of Bern and by 1895, he had set up The Tavannes Watch Company. Between 1889 and 1907, Sandoz himself had registered 39 patents, all associated with watchmaking, and a further 11 were registered under the Tavannes Watch Co. Tavannes, like many others, suffered during the quartz crisis of the 1970s, but the brand was resurrected in 2008. The Tavannes brand is closely associated with Cyma, which was created as a brand name for Tavannes to sell watches through. Cyma-Tavannes was one of the few Swiss companies to produce in-house movements up until the 1950s.
This watch comes fully serviced by our on-site workshop and with a 12 month, non-waterproof service cover.
What we think
For a watch of this age ( 93 years ), we would recommend that it is considered for occasional use, once or twice a week. This doesn't mean that you can't wear it every day, but only our recommendation. This is largely because watches of this age weren't built to deal with modern life. They do not have dust proofing, shock absorption and are easily magnetised. Please do try and keep they watch away from magnets such as computers, phones, speakers etc.
Please note, the glass was removed for some pictures to cancel out the glare.
Spec Stuff
Reference : 0165940
Movement : Manual Wind Age : 1931/1940 Specific Age : 1930 Case Size : 28mm Case Thickness : 9.4mm Lug to Lug : 38mm Lugs : 18mm Condition : Pre-Owned Box & Papers : No Case Material : Solid 925 Sterling Silver Service History : 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty
1930 Tavannes Cyma Rectangular Deco Tank Watch with Arabic Numerals in 925 Sterling Silver Case
