Monarch Pocket Watch II
Monarch Pocket Watch II
B05 POCKET WATCH IIThe Monarch 'Pocket Watch II' features a beautiful hand-engraved frame with 24K gold and silver inlays by Mark Hoechst, inlaid with 10,000 year-old fossil Woolly Mammoth tooth. The blade is hand-forged 'Intrepid' damascus by Chad Nichols; the button lock and thumb stud are set with spinel gemstones. The Monarch is a simple design that is easy on the eye and effortless in the hand; the elegant shape of the handle on this design is also an ideal canvas to showcase fine hand-engraving or exotic materials. The 'Pocket Watch II' is a stunning piece; a rich and unique synthesis of the elegance, function, and superlative artistry that are the hallmark of William Henry's work.
Materials
Fine hand-engraving
Engraving is one of the most recognized and exacting adornments on metal, and most of our engraving is done on stainless steel, and occasionally - on Titanium, adding layers of difficulty to the process. William Henry works with a select group of world-famous master engravers to create very limited edition pieces on an ongoing basis. Each edition, or piece, is carefully conceived and executed by William Henry and the engraver, and every finished engraving is hand-signed by the artist.
Gold-inlaid Engraving is another, even more complex, rendition of a classic art form. This involves creating a fine engraving with deep relief, then inlaying 24K gold (or different metals) into select portions of the engraving. If done in damascus, we then heat-color the frame which creates a beautiful darker background to highlight the gold inlay.
Fossil Mammoth tooth
From a Woolly Mammoth that walked the Earth at least 10,000 years ago.
Modern humans coexisted with woolly mammoths during the Upper Paleolithic period when they entered Europe from Africa between 30,000 and 40,000 years ago. Prior to this, Neanderthals had coexisted with mammoths during the Middle Paleolithic and up to that time. Woolly mammoths were very important to Ice Age humans, and their survival may have depended on these animals in some areas.
The woolly mammoth is the next most depicted animal in Ice Age art after horses and bisons, and these images were produced up to 11,500 years ago. Today, more than five hundred depictions of woolly mammoths are known, in media ranging from carvings and cave paintings located in 46 caves in Russia, France and Spain, to sculptures and engravings made from different materials.
William Henry's fossil Mammoth tooth is harvested in Alaska and Siberia. It is a rare and mesmerizing material, the last legacy of a legendary creature that roamed the earth at the dawn of mankind.
Spinel
Natural spinel is a gemstone that has become a great favorite with gem dealers and gem collectors; one might even say that spinel is for gemstone connoisseurs only.
It is a hard glassy mineral occurring as octahedral crystals of variable color and consisting chiefly of magnesium and aluminum oxides. Some spinels are among the most famous gemstones in the world: among them are the Black Prince's Ruby and the "Timur ruby" in the British Crown Jewels, and the "Côte de Bretagne", formerly from the French Crown jewels.