GETTING STARTED THE BASICS
GETTING STARTED THE BASICS
When you start buying watches for the first time, the jargon can be rather perplexing. Watches are generally divided into‘ sport’ and‘ dress’, but there is a whole mechanics and functionality lexicon to get to grips with. Watch aficionados call any additional horological functions a‘ complication’.
Typical examples are small windows displaying the day of the week, date or other time zones. Then there are different generic types of watch. A chronometer is a precision watch that usually comes with a certificate testifying to its accuracy. A chronograph has stopwatch functions.
Gold watches are not necessarily worth more than their stainless steel equivalents. White gold, platinum and rose gold are as popular as yellow gold, which is seen by some as a shade vulgar.
Fakes are a real hazard for the watch collector. Watchmakers in India and China have produced pieces that are almost impossible to distinguish from the real thing. And that’ s why you will almost certainly need the services of a reputable dealer to begin with.
Hallmarks are no guarantee of authenticity as they can be easily faked. More to the point, a vintage watch only has real value if every single part of it is original and individual components have not been replaced.
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