JUMP HOUR WATCH
"The early mechanical digital watches are the ancestors of the modern digital watch."
As a modern digital watch, a vintage mechanical digital watch also displays the time using digits or numerically with the difference that a mechanical digital watch is powered by a mechanical movement and not electronically powered.
The invention of the jump hour dated around 1830's by the French watchmaker Blondeau for the French King. But it was until 1883 (before the wristwatch) when Austrian engineer Josef Pallweber filed the first patent for a jump hour movement on a pocket watch. Through licensing, watch companies like IWC and Cortebert were in charge of selling hundreds of Pallweber jump hour pocket watches, they were for sure impressive figures in the nineteenth century.
Watches with a jump hour complication (jump hour mechanism) have a hour hand that does not sweep between the hours. Instead, they have a disc with the hour digits marked on it is viewed through an aperture, a spring driven finger causes the disk to jump to the next hour when the previous hour ends.
It was until the 1920's that the jump hour watch design gained far more traction, this time into the wristwatch, the first digital wristwatch. Just after WWI, with the Art Deco era that watchmakers used inspiration from the straight lines, heavy geometry, and luxury materials to innovate watch designs and the jump hour wristwatch would come up to bring iconic pieces that are still highly desired to this day.
Established names such as Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, Rolex and Cartier embraced the concept, carrying the design from pocket watches into wristwatches. Most of them opted for the closed metal front with small apertures for the hour and minutes. Others use a hand for the minutes and the hour in a window. They were only ever made in very limited quantities at the time. Other Swiss brands embraced jump hour wristwatches as well, producing this time a much greater number of pieces.
OLLENDORFF Watch Co. was started in 1868 by Isador Ollendorff. The company was listed as an export in Switzerland, and an import company in the US. Ollendorff imported watches from Switzerland and was run by the family in New York City until it was sold to the Gotham Watch Company in 1956 and later merged with Winton Watch Company.
JUMP HOUR WRISTWATCH
- Direct Read -
Hour, Minute and Second Indicators
By OLLENDORFF Watch Co.
"A Watch without a Crystal" - "THE IRON MASK"
There were items of transitional technology, these are superb artefacts of a pre-LED/LCD Quartz era, where the basic mechanism of a standard jeweled watch was fitted with wheels under dial instead of overdial hands, to create these dramatic machines.
Representing luxury, glamour, and exuberance, together with the era of Art Deco designs, a new alternative way of displaying the time began once again. This time with a faith in social and technological progress, the jump hour wristwatch.
They still look sleek and modern at this time when it probably seems quite passed to be reading dials and gauges with hands. A beautiful vertical symmetry of this everlasting Ollendorff. For sure, this special watchmachine gives a little nod to its heritage.
This unique timepiece is a real vintage Ollendorff jump hour wristwatch, dated from the 1930's. A direct read or digital mechanical watch. It is a manual wind watch with an original Ollendorff movement, caliber EBB0, 7 jewels, sub second, jump hour mechanism, unadjusted, Swiss made.
Cased in a 26mm rectangle Art Deco case, all in 14K yellow rolled gold plated. Beautiful engraved on the case sides and lug design. The case back is also signed by OLLENDORFF W. C.
The top panel shows the hour, the center panel tells how many minutes past the hour. The bottom panel moves as the second pass. Every time the minute panel reaches sixty, the hour panel jumps to the next hour.
The hour, minute and second numerals (discs) are in excellent condition.
This watch comes with a vintage brown two-piece leather strap.
It is a very good-looking wristwatch, for sure a super cool timepiece.
After 90 years, it is still a unique watch, it is in great condition, keeps good time and runs very well.
Thank you for looking! Please feel free to contact us with any questions, or respectful offers.
Movement:
OLLENDORFF WATCH Co.
EBB0
7 Jewels
1538
Unadjusted
Swiss
Case Markings:
OLLENDORFF W. C.
14K Rolled Gold Plated
Measurements (mm):
Case 26x0.8 3
Case Lug to Lug 38
Case Thickness 8.5
Lug Width 14
Band Width 14
Vintage watches are traditionally smaller than today's watches. Men’s watches typically measure between 29-36mm wide (some larger, some smaller) excluding the crown. In the listing details we typically try to do our best to list all pertinent dimensions of a watch. If you don't see it, or we failed to do so, please reach out to us. Women’s watches from the 1900s-1970s were also much smaller than today's offerings. Please also feel free to ask any questions you have pertaining to size.
We prefer to shoot photographs outside when weather is permitting. However, when we shoot indoors, please be aware that we shoot our photographs inside of lightboxes that are lit with 360 LED bulbs. This indeed magnifies any flaws. Usually, they are much less obvious to the naked eye. Having said that, we never photoshop any of our photography, remove blemishes, etc. We adjust lighting when necessary, but what you see is what you are getting, and we take pride in that.
The condition is pre-owned.
The item may have some signs of cosmetic wear but is fully operational and functions as intended.
Please review the photos and feel free to ask any questions you may have.
It will be carefully packed.
Please view our other listings.
Thank you for looking!
WA-3340
