# Help, Hallmark'S And Date



## 2guntex (Apr 28, 2011)

Hi,can anyone help please i have inherited a pocket watch, on the dial is H STONE LEEDS,inside the back cover is a lion anchor and letter h,below that No 582693,below that letters WE below that letter M,UNDER THAT A 9, under that a F, my limited attempt gets me Birmingham, 1907,and William Elliott, can someone clarify,and mabe improve. thank you (sorry dont know how to upload pictures yet)


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## EddyW (Feb 13, 2010)

2guntex said:


> Hi,can anyone help please i have inherited a pocket watch, on the dial is H STONE LEEDS,inside the back cover is a lion anchor and letter h,below that No 582693,below that letters WE below that letter M,UNDER THAT A 9, under that a F, my limited attempt gets me Birmingham, 1907,and William Elliott, can someone clarify,and mabe improve. thank you (sorry dont know how to upload pictures yet)


Hello.

Try to get the hang of the photo insert function,

An old old saying is "a picture paints a thousand words" Especially when trying to de-cipher hallmarks, The style of the date letter is essential as is the stance/style of the lion and a mistake can mean the difference of up to something like 200 years,

OK that is a bit extreme but emphasizes the importance of getting it right.

Lower case "h" gives Birmingham dates from, 1805, 1831, 1882, 1907, 2007, Yes the watch style and look can (to some) date a watch instantly but when all of the above is rolled in together we commoners can get a more accurate assessment of the piece

Like I said try the photos it is not really that hard just follow the instructions.

good luck.


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## AlanJohn (Mar 17, 2011)

guntex. Birmingham, 1907-1908, is probably correct if it came from your grandfather. But it has all been said, a picture would make it a lot clearer.I can't find the letters WE in my book but you well may be right with William Elliot.

Is the watch key wind,or stem wound? This would make a difference in dating it. Stem wound watches came into popularity in 1850, but key wound watches still were made well after that.


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## davidcxn (Nov 4, 2010)

Hi there, I was seeing if I could find any information to help on line. What I found was a posting on this forum in 2008. Details are given of the retailer, case maker and some high quality images. I'm sorry that I'm not sure how to include a link but the post title was "Leeds Piece And History" and it was posted on 15 May 2008 by James. If you type the post title in Google this post is the first result given. I hope it helps with your research.

Regards

David


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## ZeroTheHero (May 17, 2011)

As a newbie - I am not sure if this is so obvious as to be a silly thing to mention, but there is a very good site here:

http://www.silvermakersmarks.co.uk

which has photos of many silversmiths marks.

The Birminham ones for 'WE' are here:

http://www.silvermakersmarks.co.uk/Makers/Birmingham-W.html

If the hallmarks are unclear or ambiguous, I have found that site very helpful in that you may be able to narrow it down using the makers mark.

Cheers - Jon


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## Mikrolisk (Jan 23, 2008)

Or you can visit my website, then after switching to english language go to "how old is my watch" and enter the hallmark data in the form for english watches.

Andreas


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