DESCRIPTION:
WW - Lord Elgin, electronic, 29mm x 36mm to lug tips, 16mm lug width, original gold-filled unibody case with setting crown on the rear, original leather strap with signed buckle, original silvered dial with applied gold indices, 15J cal 725, s#S061183, triple signed. This particular watch includes its original inner and outer box as well as instruction booklet, which according to several sources is the only known complete example in the marketplace. The story begins with a press release in 1952 where to much fanfair, it was heralded at the time by the press to be the most important horological development in 450 years. However Elgin's electric would be plagued by high development costs. As a struggling company trying to compete with other Swiss and American brands, the electric division suffered. Ten years later, in 1962, the Elgin electric finally saw its day in the sun with a small test release in Chicago. Having been beaten to the market by Hamilton, Bulova, Landeron and the French company LIP, the watch was a commercial flop. Many of the watches ended up being returned to Elgin as defective in exchange for certificates toward Elgin's selfwinding models. This caused the early back-set Elgins to be incredibly scarce and rare in the collector space, and also led to the eventual demise in 1968 of a once great American producer of watches.
CONDITION:
Mvt: GRO, near mint cosmetic mvt condition overall, no oxide; near flawless dial; near mint hands with only very light spotting; unpolished case shows hardly any wear, no dents or dings; crown shows hardly any wear; good plastic crystal. Battery removed 3/3. Near mint inner box; outer box shows moderate wear and two split corners on the bottom half are held together with tape.
ESTIMATE:
$1000
-
$2000
PRICE SOLD:
$600
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