What makes a watch valuable? There are many factors, but one of the most important is the type of movement.
The movement of a watch refers to the mechanism that moves the hands (or other chronological displays) – it is the beating heart of a timepiece. In the earliest days of watchmaking, all movements were made by hand, carefully crafted by a watchmaker out of fine metals and painstakingly assembled.
As technology progressed, many of the watchmaking processes became automated. Among the most important innovations was the quartz movement. Vintage watches work as a wound spring unwinds, driving gears that are controlled by the escapement. The quality of the workmanship behind the timekeeping mechanism directly affected how well the timepiece kept time and how durable the timepiece was.
Quartz watches keep time by measuring electronic oscillations as regulated by a quartz crystal. The chief advantage is that a quartz watch does not usually need to be wound – a battery keeps it running. Quartz watches are also very accurate.
However, they are also quite a bit easier to make. A wind-up Mickey Mouse watch is far more rare than a quartz movement Mickey Mouse watch made just a few years earlier. Many high-end manufacturers of watches will have models with a quartz movement, and others with a mechanical movement like a German or Swiss movement. The mechanical movements are more highly prized and command higher prices.
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