*British, WW2, c1940 Military GSTP Pocket Watch, American Made by Elgin, with Field Case*
This is a pocket watch by Elgin an American watch maker, made for and used by the British government during World War 2. It is a nickel cased lever pocket watch with manual winding.
Nickel open face case, with a snap on back and bezel and a railroad track design around the outer circumference. The black enamel dial is made using many layers of baked silica on two metal plates and tinted black. It has luminous (no longer luminous) hours, matching hands and subsidiary seconds dial at 6 o’clock. The dial is signed “Elgin”. The back has the British Broad Arrow followed by the letters G.S.T.P followed by the serial number 354323 followed by XX. (G.S.T.P. stands for General Services Timepiece/Temporary Pattern, which indicates that the watch was purchased by the British government for the armed forces 1939-1945. XX is thought to mean superior quality but this is unconfirmed and it is more likely to mean decommissioned from army use.) 9 jewel jeweled lever movement – Elgin only made the 9j watches for military use. 5cm diameter.
The external field case measures 5.5cm diameter. The protective plastic case is loose.
The Elgin National Watch Company, commonly known as Elgin Watch Company, was a major US watch maker from 1864 to 1968. The company sold watches under the names Elgin, Lord Elgin, and Lady Elgin. During World War II, the company halted all civilian manufacturing. It moved into the defense industry, manufacturing military watches, chronometers, fuzes for artillery shells, altimeters, and other aircraft instruments and sapphire bearings used for aiming cannons.
*Condition*
The face is in good condition with some wear to the painted lumed Arabic numerals. The stem works to pull to change the time and to wind the watch. The second hand works and the watch appears to keep time. We can open the back on request. Please see photographs as part of the condition report.
JAQHOXCOO_4451139144
