Swiss 14K rose gold hunting cased lever pocket watch Circa 1917

Rose gold full hunter by International Watch Co.
–
A Swiss 14 Carat rose gold hunting cased lever pocket watch, circa 1917. Bridge movement, lever escapement, screw compensation balance. White enamel dial with Arabic hours, outer minute divisions and sunk subsidiary seconds. Engine turned case. Dial signed, case and movement numbered.
–
Diameter: 53 mm
–
Weight: 101 g
–
Signed: International Watch Co Schaffhausen
–
IWC’s motto is Probus Scafusia, a Latin phrase meaning ‘good, solid craftsmanship from Schaffhausen’. The motto was established in 1903.
–
International Watch Company Schaffhausen (IWC) was founded in 1868 by Florentine Ariosto Jones (1841–1916), an American engineer and watchmaker from Boston, Massachusetts, who had been a director of E. Howard & Co. in Boston, America’s leading watchmaking company at the time. He established the company intending to combine modern engineering technology from the U.S. with the craftsmanship of the Swiss to manufacture high quality watches exclusively for the American market. Then, wages in Switzerland were relatively low although there was a ready supply of skilled watchmaking labour mainly carried out by people in their homes. Jones encountered opposition to his plans in French speaking Switzerland. People feared for their jobs and the work they did at home because he wanted to open a factory. In 1850, Schaffhausen was in danger of being left behind in the Industrial Age. At this stage, watch manufacturer and industrialist Johann Heinrich Moser built Schaffhausen’s first hydroelectric plant laying the cornerstone for future industrialization. He probably met Jones in Le Locle and showed great interest in his plans. Together, they laid the foundations for the only watch manufacturer in north east Switzerland: the International Watch Company in Schaffhausen.