This Longines because it does exactly what I want an early 20th century pocket watch to do: it feels elegant without trying too hard. The dial and case are wonderfully clean and restrained, with those flowing Arabic numerals and lovely blued steel hands that give the whole watch just enough personality. Even with the small dial flaws, it still has that calm, refined look that made me want to save it.

The wrist watch revolution started when so-called trench watches became popular with soldiers during WW1. Initially, these were basically small pocket watch movements strapped to the wrist, and this Tavannes example, with a porcelian dial and hinged caseback, certainly fits that bill. I wish I knew a bit more about this watch - the movement is unfortunately unmarked - but I treasure it as the real “granddaddy” of my wristwatch collection.