A couple were left gobsmacked after an Italian chronograph from the Second World War was valued at a whopping price.
On the latest episode of The Antiques Roadshow, a couple brought expert Richard Price a timepiece from one of their grandparents who served in the RAF in the Second World War.
The pair seemed clueless about the relic they had bought in, only to be wowed by its origin and history.
“We came across it ourselves when he passed away sadly 34 years ago” one of the guests said of his late grandfather, kicking off the evaluation discussion.
“It’s been basically in a drawer ever since.”
“I’m not surprised!” Price quipped, “because it’s not the sort of thing you could ever really wear is it, let’s be honest”.
The watch, two times the size of a regular wrist watch, had massive lugs to attach wrist straps to, and clearly was designed for a different purpose than to be worn traditionally.
“Why do you think the lugs are big?” Price probed the couple eagerly.
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A photo of the vintage wrist watch in the latest episode of Antiques Road Show
The couple failed to hazard a guess as to the strange design of the military watch.
“The reason that the lugs are massive is because it would’ve had a very large, thick leather strap that went over a flying jacket.”
“Oh, right I see yes.” the couple exclaimed in unison.
“So it was worn on the wrist, but not conventionally.”
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Richard Price explains the rich history behind the WW2 timepiece
Price went on to point out it was an Italian reverse chronograph; made by Leonidas – a switch watch maker which begun in the 1840s, before merging with Heuer circa 1960.
“Leonidas Heuer then really, after the Japanese courts invasion, they became the primary timers for all the international sporting events.
“So great, great, from that point of view… and this is probably 1935, possibly towards the start of the war.
“I’m sure you probably tried out – you press the button at three O’clock and off it goes in a clockwise direction, and then you press again, and it goes back”
Price admitted he had never operated a watch of that kind before, and was unsure when war pilots would start the timer after dropping bombs, but encouraged anyone who knew how it worked to inform him.
After, he got straight to what the couple had been waiting for: “So, money!” he said.
“No one is going to wear it on the wrist” he admitted, “it’s too big, and it doesn’t tell the time anyway, so it would be a pointless exercise.
“So military collectors will like it, but particularly the italians,” he said, referring to the watches origin.
Price wrapped up the evaluation by delivering a shocking final verdict.
“So let’s say realistically for something like that… two and a half thousand pounds?”
The valuation left the couple shocked and in a state of disbelief, failing to produce words at first, before they admitted they were over the moon with the value of it.