By Hunter Oatman-Stanford — Though it's hard to believe, there once was a time when workers in the Rust Belt were delighted to have their jobs—and themselves—shipped overseas. Shortly after the stock market crash of 1929, the Soviet Union purchased a bankrupt watch manufacturer in Ohio and moved the business halfway across the globe to Moscow, employees and all. The international maneuver wasn't viewed as a competitive threat to American industry—after all, the company’s products were already outdated and the recently...

Google Glassholes: High-Tech Visionaries or Fashion Victims?

By Ben Marks — Even though 2014 is poised to be the year of the wearable, everyone’s talking about the glassholes who wear them. That’s the writes-itself pejorative for the 10,000 or so people who’ve coughed up $1,500 to beta-test a pair of Glass, the awkwardly singular brand name Google has given its interactive spectacles, which lets wearers take photos, shoot video, get driving directions, and perform any number of verbal searches on Google, all while staring into space like a data-drugged...

Time for Tuna: 'Sorry Charlie' Wristwatch

By Ben Marks — I don't wear a wristwatch, but I do have a weak spot for tuna sandwiches, preferably on sourdough, with a squeeze of fresh Meyer lemon and a thick slice of tomato. Mmmm. So I guess might wear this timepiece, posted a few days ago on Show & Tell by silveruser, who wants to know the age and value of this charming advertising wristwatch. After some amateur sleuthing, here's what I found out. This watch is probably from 1973 (I can't make out the date just to the right of the 7, but...

Don Levison on Cartier Tanks, Rolex Oysters, and Hamilton Venturas

By Maribeth Keane and Brad Quinn — I got interested in pocket watches from working on mechanical things. I had an old car, and working on it gave me immediate satisfaction. It’s a thrill to fix something and get it to run. But I realized that keeping an old car in San Francisco wasn’t the most efficient thing to do, so I guess pockets watches became a substitute. From pocket watches I moved into wristwatches. Pocket watches are still my primary interest, but I love classic wristwatches, like old Rolex Bubblebacks and things...

Jonathan Snellenburg Ticks off the History of Watches and Clocks

By Ben Marks — I grew up outside of Philadelphia. I didn’t have any particular interest in clocks or watches as a kid; that came after I started working at Christie’s East, where I ran the Jewelry and Silver Departments. When I arrived, I found watches basically sitting on my desk, so I began studying them, cataloging them, and doing watch sales. I don’t collect watches myself; I have more than enough clocks and watches that pass through my hands. It’s my own sort of virtual collection. I’m not an...

Elgins, Patek Philippes, and Other Timeless Wristwatches

By Maribeth Keane — I started with pocket watches as a child, watching old movies on television, watching the cowboys occasionally pull out an old pocket watch. I collected pocket watches until my grandfather gave me his old wristwatch when I was about 18. It was a real funny-looking, old thing, and I thought it was an interesting design, a little bit different. I wore it and was surprised at the amount of comments that I got from people. So that was my first bit of interest. I really got hit hard in my late...