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Military Watches

From the functional, everyday pieces still in circulation today to watches with extraordinary provenance, Fellows' watch auctions have seen them all.

What makes a good military watch? Whether they have a lot of complications to aid the wearer in their tasks or are more basic, the most important thing is that they are hard-wearing. Fellows has sold watches that survived active combat in WWII, whether it was a Panerai used by German Kampfschwimmer during covert missions, a Hanhart which helped Germany Luftwaffe officers navigate the skies or a complete set of rare Dirty Dozen watches produced for the British Army, the watch auctions at Fellows have seen some pretty amazing pieces.

Did you know...

We have had the privilege of selling two Panerai timepieces from World War II. The first was sold in January 2018 for £52,316 including fees. This watch came into the possession of a British soldier during the Second World War. George H. Rowson acquired the watch from a Kampfschwimmer (German frogman), during a thwarted attempted on behalf of the German forces to destroy the important Nijmegen Bridge in the Netherlands, in September 1944.

Following the success of the first Panerai we were delighted to consign a historic military Panerai watch head. This item came along with Captain Packer’s military issue jacket, photograph, military service records and a fascinating personal diary depicting the experiences of the regiment in 1944. Including fees, it sold for £53,592 in April 2019.