1906 Antique DOXA Medaille D\'or Milan Swiss German Silver Pocket Watch 15 Rubis For Sale

hese are vintage Doxa pocket watches, with many examples featuring porcelain dials and Swiss mechanical movements.

• Manufacturing Details: These watches were often produced in Switzerland between 1900 and 1930 and sometimes feature cases made of silver or Argentan.
• Design Features: The watches typically have an open-face design with porcelain enamel dials, large Arabic numerals, and sometimes a 24-hour ring.
• Awards: Many Doxa watches from this era celebrate awards on their inner covers, such as the \"Medaille D\'or Milan 1906\" or honors from the 1905 Liège World\'s Fair.

The 1906 MilestoneYour watch belongs to the era when Doxa won the prestigious Gold Medal (\"Médaille d\'Or\") at the Milan International World\'s Fair in 1906. If you open the back case of these specific models, you will often find this award beautifully engraved directly onto the inner dust cover (the cuvette).Key Characteristics of 1906-Era Doxa Watches

• Dial Material: A delicate porcelain enamel dial that is highly prone to fine hairline cracks over time.
• Dual Time Markings: Black Arabic numerals for standard 12-hour time, paired with an outer red ring for 24-hour military time.
• Sub-Dial: A dedicated small seconds register located at the 6 o\'clock position.
• Case Material: Commonly built using Argentan (a durable nickel-silver alloy) or solid .800 silver.

Engraving Highlights

• Milan 1906: Specifies the Gold Medal (\"Medaille D\'Or\") won at the Milan International Exposition.
• Hors Concours: Means \"Outside Competition,\" showing Doxa had achieved such high status that its watches were displayed as examples of excellence rather than judged against others.
• Liége 1905: References a separate honor received at the Liége World\'s Fair a year prior.

Technical Details From Your Case

• Material: The oval stamp on the left lid reads \"Argentan.\" This is a durable nickel-copper-zinc alloy (often called German silver) used for heavy-duty daily wear.
• Production Date: Because it lists the 1906 Milan award, this specific watch was manufactured after 1906, likely between 1907 and 1920, to market Doxa\'s award-winning design.

Case Markings Decoded

• Metal Argentan: Confirms the case is made of \"German Silver\" (a sturdy nickel-copper-zinc alloy containing no real silver) [1].
• Déposé: A French term meaning \"Registered\" or \"Patented,\" showing Doxa officially registered this specific case design [2].
• Serial Number: The stamped number 1461853 is the unique tracking identifier for this specific watch case.

Patina and Care NoteThe small, greenish spots visible on the surface are verdigris. This happens when the copper inside the Argentan alloy reacts to moisture, sweat, or air over many decades. You can gently wipe this away with a dry toothpick or microfiber cloth to stop it from spreading, but avoid harsh liquid cleaners.
Inside Markings Decoded

• The DOXA Branding: The iconic DOXA name is beautifully engraved into the main plate of the movement, styled with elegant, flowing serifs.
• Jeweled Bearings: The synthetic pink/red stones you see are rubies used as pivot bearings. They reduce friction on the spinning gear axles, ensuring the watch runs smoothly and lasts for generations.
• Regulator Scale: Below the Doxa logo, you can see a small arc with a line and letters (typically \"F\" for Fast and \"S\" for Slow, or \"A\" / \"R\" for Advance/Retard in French). A watchmaker would slide the tiny pointer along this scale to calibrate the watch if it was running too fast or too slow.

Condition AnalysisThe gears, screws, and plates look remarkably clean and free of rust, which is fantastic for a watch that is roughly 110 years old! However, you can see some heavier green verdigris buildup along the inner brass rim and the hinge on the left side.
This pocket watch is universally classified by collectors and vintage enthusiasts as the Doxa \"Médaille d\'Or Milan 1906\".During the early 20th century, Swiss watch manufactures rarely gave distinct marketing names (like Submariner or Speedmaster) to their standard pocket watches. Instead, models were named after their hallmark features, cases, or exhibition awards:

• The Model Designation: It is historically identified as an open-face Doxa Milan 1906 Grand Prix / Medaille d\'Or pocket watch.
• The Caliber (Internal Movement): Based on the configuration of your gears and layout, it is powered by a signed Doxa Caliber 18 3/4 ligne manual-wind mechanical movement. This was Doxa\'s workhorse movement size for standard men\'s dress and utility pocket watches of that generation.
• Case Variant: Your specific variation is the Argentan Open-Face, referencing its specific nickel-copper alloy casing materials.

If you ever see a listing online or look to reference it in vintage catalogs, searching for \"Doxa Medaille d\'Or Milan 1906 pocket watch\" is the exact industry terminology used to categorize this piece.
This pocket watch movement contains 15 stones (historically referred to as \"15 Jewels\" or 15 Rubis in French watchmaking).The word \"stones\" refers to the synthetic rubies used as bearings inside the mechanical gears to protect against friction and metal-on-metal wear.Where the 15 Stones Are LocatedA standard Swiss 15-jewel lever movement of this era distributes the stones across the internal mechanism to protect the most critical moving components:

• 7 Stones on the Escapement & Balance: This is the fast-spinning beating heart of the watch. It features 2 hole stones and 2 cap stones on the balance wheel axle, 2 ruby pallet jewels on the ticking anchor fork, and 1 roller jewel impulse pin.
• 8 Stones on the Gear Train Wheels: These are the ruby bearings paired on both the top and bottom plates for the axles of the escape wheel, fourth wheel, and third wheel.

The Historical StandardIn the early 1900s, a 15-jewel movement was considered a fully-jeweled, high-quality \"jeweled to the third wheel\" utility watch. It provided everything necessary to make a pocket watch highly accurate, reliable, and durable enough to last over a century, without adding extra decorative stones that didn\'t serve a functional mechanical purpose.
Historical Context & Details

• The Recipient: The watch was gifted to a man named Nikolai Vladimirovich Piragov-Koshits for his 55th birthday.
• The Theme: The text explicitly honors him as a \"passionate hunter\" (\"страстному охотнику\"). This theme is beautifully reinforced by the small bird engraving at the very top of the lid and the leaf branches at the bottom.
• The Giver: It is signed as a gift from a comrade (\"от тов.\") named Borovstva, or potentially a local hunting collective from that region.
• The Date and Location: It was presented in the historic city of Kiev in the year 1963.

This engraving adds an incredible layer of personal history to your watch. It tells us that while the watch itself was manufactured in Switzerland around the 1910s-1920s, it survived for decades and was kept as a treasured heirloom or prized possession in the Soviet Union well into the mid-20th century.