Hello Ted,
Thank you for sending in this lady’s gold wristwatch to mearto.com for an appraisal. I will do that for you today.
TITLE:
Ladies 14k gold, manually wound and set, mechanical, ‘gold nugget’ dressy cocktail wristwatch with 14k gold nugget link bracelet, made and sold by Lucien Picard Switzerland and New York City, circa 1960s.
PROVENANCE:
‘Mother’s watch’
DESCRIPTION:
Case: Size not provided but the case diameter is approximated to be 14-19mm in diameter,+/-. The watch case is round with a broad 14k gold textured bezel and the central bezel glass overlying the dial has about half the diameter of the bezel. The texturing of the case was called gold nugget styling at the time. The fluted gold winding crown is hidden by the width of the bezel and the round back cover holding the movement again is about half the width of the front of the case and is marked Lucien Piccard, 14k, case number C6658. There are hidden straight lugs which have been attached directly to the case back cover and attached to the gold nugget link bracelet, also marked 14k in the fold over, ladder type clasp. The bracelet is three links wide, textured on the three links across the front and only on the middle link across the back where the outer links are solid and smooth yellow gold.
Dial: champagne colored metal round dial with black enameled roman hours, steel pointy baton hands and the upper dial signed in script Lucien Picard with curls at the start and the name underlined, a style noted during the 1960’s and early 1970s.
Movement: NOT SHOWN – assumed to be a manually winding mechanical movement and NIT a quartz movement. Most likely this is the Lucien Picard calibre 50 movement, made with 17 jewels, the plates marked, Lucien Piccard, Swiss, LP50, unadjusted, serial number, and the ratchet wheel, in earlier models is cast with the name ‘Piccard’. If the movement is a quartz example, then this appraisal is declared invalid.
Condition: Movement – assumed genuine, original to this case and functional. Case – scratched name on back of case most likely unrelated to Lucien Piccard. There is some evidence of repair work, especially where the bracelet meets the case lugs and one outer link seems thinner than the other three.
Overall, in good to very good condition.
HISTORY:
Lucien Piccard, a brand enriched in vintage heritage and timeless style was founded by a family member in Switzerland in 1923. For over 90 years, generations have chosen Lucien Piccard timepieces for their superb artisanship and timeless designs.
Lucien Picard timepieces have been seen on the wrists of royalty, dignitaries and celebrities worldwide including the iconic, debonair entertainer Frank Sinatra.
True story! crownandcaliber.com reports that “Sinatra’s second wife Ava Gardner gave him a Lucien Piccard watch: yellow gold with a silver frost dial, engraved with a message, ‘To Frank and desert nights. Ava.'” Back in the day, Lucien Piccard was a respected establishment – they assembled watches from available parts. They sold some wonderful minimalist timepieces. Unlike LP’s current “gold tone” timepieces, their vintage gold watches still command a pretty penny. Piccard “pioneered the use of precious gemstones in watchmaking.” They were also one of the first watchmakers to use slim-line watch designs in their assortment.
At some point, probably during the quartz crisis, things went seriously south for Lucien Piccard. The brand soldiered on through the 80’s, trading on their luxury rep. By 2010, one of the most respected and heavily advertised luxury watch brands in horological history – the “most distinguished name in Swiss watchmaking” – threw in the towel.
Florida-based Swiss Watch International (now owned by Clearlake Capital Group) bought LP out of bankruptcy. They pumped cheap Chinese-made Piccards into their online World of Watches and The Watchery websites.
By 1961, Lucien Picard Industries, Inc was in New York city as an importer using Swiss movements in watch cases of their own design. They had been in NYC for the previous twenty years both making and importing Swiss watch movements. They had a history at that time of a limited production of truly handcrafted fully jeweled mechanical watches, but by 1975 they were planning on bring out their own collection of quartz powered wristwatches. Lucien Picard, the watchmaker went out of business as early as 1977 but Lucien Picard Industries continued to function as an importer. Then ownership began to change and the quality of the name dropped off the table.
COMPARABLES:
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/88315156_ladies-lucien-picard-14k-manual-wind-wristwatch (sold for $850 in 2020)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/9836231_4207a-picard-ladies-watch-bracelet (Sold for $650 in 2011)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/88315157_ladies-lucien-picard-14k-manual-wind-wristwatch (sold for $550 in 2020 in 14k gold)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/78050523_vintage-ladies-14k-gold-lucien-picard-watch-bracelet-c (also with 14k case and bracelet but with a quartz movement this example sold in 2019 for $200)
~https://www.chrono24.com/all/lucien-piccard-14ct-yellow-gold--sapphire-vintage-manual-wind-womens-watch--id20094981.htm (this is heavy 14k gold case and bracelet dating to the early 1970s with mechanical movement offered RETAIL for $3247 currently, remember retail is 2-3 times the fair market value)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/75819001_14k-lucien-picard-ladies-bracelet-watch-174-dwt (Sold for $500 in 2019)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/71747980_lady-s-lucien-picard-wristwatch (sold for $525 in 2019)
~https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/51172099_lucien-picard-14kt-watch (SOLD FOR $500 IN 2017)
PRICING:
This is a very dressy watch ladies wristwatch made in the 1960s and it retains much of its appeal today although there is a desire for less bling today than fifty years ago. If the watch has a genuine and authentic Piccard mechanical movement the fair market value would be in the range of $800- $1000, if the watch is functional. I decided to proceed with this appraisal since I am fairly certain it holds a mechanical movement. Remember this watch has been priced for sale on the watch market and NOT into the gold market, which would destroy the watch. I could not price it for the gold market because you did not provide me with the weight of watch and bracelet.
Thank you for choosing mearto.com for this appraisal.
My best,
David