Rare WWII German Luftwaffe watch to be sold at auction in Banbury

The watch, which was manufactured by A Lange and Sohne for the German Air Force, will be sold at Holloway’s Auctioneers on Saturday February 3.

Bought to the auctioneers to be valued by a Banbury resident, the strapless watch could go for over £3,000 at the auction.

Valuer Paul Fox said: “Our client brought the watch in for valuation and we were amazed.

"It’s such an important military find. It’s due to go under the hammer on Saturday guided at £2,000-£3,000. However, due to its scarcity, it could fly higher.”

The watch belonged to the father of the seller and is believed to have been picked up during his time serving as an officer in the Belgian army during World War Two.

Speaking about his father, the seller said: “He spent time in a German prisoner of war camp in Germany before escaping to England, where he took part in preparations for and participated in the D-Day landings in Normandy, France, in 1944.

“It has been in my possession since my father’s death in the early 1980s. It has moved around with me in my father’s old briefcase since then. Ironically, at one stage, it was with me in Soest, Germany, which was the location of one of the POW camps my father was held in.”

The robust, precise and easy to read watch was created by the German Air Ministry to aid the German Air Force during bombing missions.

Paul said: “Every watch underwent stringent testing for accuracy before being certified by the German Naval Observatory. They were not personally issued to aircrew but supplied to bomber crew navigators before every mission. Afterwards they were returned to the stores.

“They are highly prized collectors’ items because, due to heavy losses sustained by the Luftwaffe in WW2, few survived the war. Consequently, to find one in Banbury 79 years after the 1939-45 conflict ended is extraordinary. However, the vendor’s back story provides the provenance."

For more information regarding Saturday’s auction, visit the website https://www.hollowaysauctioneers.co.uk/home-page/