Antiques Roadshow

GUEST: This was my father's watch.

I never saw my dad wear the watch.

I was looking through photo albums about five or six years ago and noticed the watch on him.

And I thought, I have this watch in a jewelry box that I saved from him after he passed away.

APPRAISER: Okay.

GUEST: I believe it to be his graduation gift from high school.

That would be my guess.

He graduated in 1938.

APPRAISER: Let's go back to 1930.

We're at a polo match in India.

The British army is, is playing, and one of the players smashed the crystal on his watch.

Somebody watching happened to be in the watch business.

There must have been some conversations.

Can't they make a watch that will be protective so we can wear it in a sport?

GUEST: Mm.

APPRAISER: And from there it got brought to Jacques LeCoultre, who was a watchmaker in Switzerland, who then talked to a friend of his, Edmond Jaeger.

And over a period of a year or so, designs came up to make a watch called the Reverso.

And the watch was introduced to the public in 1931.

The watch is made out of stainless steel... GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: ...and at the time in their advertisements, they called it Staybrite.

So somebody could be wearing the watch and then... ...it snaps right to the back.

And now the crystal and the dial and hands are protected.

Now, what's on the back here?

GUEST: That is my father's initials, R.W.

APPRAISER: The watch of your dad's was actually made in the first batch.

Made in 1931.

GUEST: Wow.

APPRAISER: On the back of the watch is the word "patent" and the serial number, which is 6124.

GUEST: Mm-hmm.

APPRAISER: It's one of the earliest recorded serial numbers of the original Reverso from 1931.

GUEST: Oh.

APPRAISER: The model is called the 201.

The movement is a Tavannes 064.

Because it's so famous, in 2011, for the 80th anniversary of the Reverso, Jaeger produced, basically, the exact copy of this watch.

And it was a complete sellout at the time.

The dial is a black enamel, and all the markers are gilded in gold.

This watch is probably one of the finest examples that I've seen.

GUEST: Oh, my.

APPRAISER: He couldn't have worn it a ton.

GUEST: Right.

APPRAISER: In the retail market, this would probably be a fairly easy sale.

Somewhere in the $17,000 to $22,000 price range.

GUEST: Awesome, that's great.

That is really good to hear.

APPRAISER: (laughs) It's, it's the real deal.

GUEST: (laughs) Okay.

All right.