AND HE RETURNED AMONG THE DEAD...
This simple watch that I present today has a somewhat extravagant history to its credit.
For centuries, in Spain it was customary to bury the deceased in their best clothes. This also included jewelry, canes, medals and of course, in many cases their watches that had accompanied them in life. At the same time, we must take into account that many of the tombs in cemeteries were not owned by the family of the deceased, but were rented for 25, 30 or 50 years in many cases. In this way, and if the deceased no longer had family at the end of that period of time or the family did not wish to continue paying rent for that grave, the remains were exhumed and deposited in a common ossuary. And this is where this simple FLYCA watch comes into the picture. It is a watch made in Spain during the early 1960s, simple, economical and quite precise in operation, which accompanied its owner for decades in his final rest, until due to external causes he was "awakened" to the world of the living. (Not the owner, of course, just the watch...) After passing from hand to hand for some time, this curious piece with its picturesque and extravagant history ended up in mine a few years ago, through a collector and watchmaking expert from Barcelona. To my surprise, this machine worked perfectly from day one and continues doing it so to this day, without even requiring minimal service maintenance, because according to a couple of watchmakers who examined it, its operation was completely correct and the clock did not require it. I hope you found this little story to your liking, Crushers. As you can sometimes see, our beloved watches, like many of ourselves, do not stand out for their exceptional qualities, but the stories that surround them are truly unrepeatable.
P.S.: "ERRARE HUMANUM EST" 🙄
Dear Crushers, I must do a correction to what was I wrote here this same morning.
Due to a lapse, I wrote that this watch was "made in Spain", but this is not the case. It is a watch MADE IN SWITZERLAND. In fact, it is mounted on a Venus 180 machine.
As you can see from the photos that I attach, except for the time when I gave it to two master watchmakers at February 2018 to verify its condition and operation, it was only serviced once and that was in July 1963, where somebody left his signature as "HM".
My apologies for the small lapse, friends.
Happy weekend, Crushers! 😎
Amante de los relojes y del increible universo que los rodea desde mi adolescencia. Coleccionista, restaurador amateur y admirador de estas máquinas increíbles.
Thx for the post, fascinating story, the watch displays perfectly that great design need not be complicated. When my older brother passed away at a quite young age, family members were unprepared for the sad event needed to consult with one of the directors who was an authority on a proper rest. The items that the adored departed was allowed by tradition to be buried with was determined by his age, marital status, profession, assets etcetera etcetera. His family had no desire to bury any of his watches into the afterlife. My niece started to wear his old Blue dial 2 tone Breitling Chronomat recently, never takes it off.
That's a great story thanks for sharing 👍.
Thx for the post, fascinating story, the watch displays perfectly that great design need not be complicated. When my older brother passed away at a quite young age, family members were unprepared for the sad event needed to consult with one of the directors who was an authority on a proper rest. The items that the adored departed was allowed by tradition to be buried with was determined by his age, marital status, profession, assets etcetera etcetera. His family had no desire to bury any of his watches into the afterlife. My niece started to wear his old Blue dial 2 tone Breitling Chronomat recently, never takes it off.
things are just things. they truly gain value once we emotionally attach them to our human experience. may your brother rest in peace, you and your family find comfort.
Very interesting. I can see some people feel uncomfortable wearing a watch that lay in a grave on the wrist of a deceased person. Obviously not your case, though.
I can't help but letting my imagination wander towards the story of a cursed watch that wants to return to the ground and puts the wearer(s) through all sorts of terrible dangers...
things are just things. they truly gain value once we emotionally attach them to our human experience. may your brother rest in peace, you and your family find comfort.
Thank you! ❤️It has been a very long time already but I admit there are no days when my big brother, best friend in life does not enter my thoughts! He had so much to live for but I also understand that he left on his own terms! Best to you! ❤️
Wow! Pretty interesting story. I collect vintage watches and sometimes I get them covered in dead skin and dirt. I mean really caked between the lugs and the bottom of the case. They reek of rotting flesh. I can't imagine how they could get that dirty. I know people love their watches but I'm talking it would be hard to wear and sit on the wrist right dirty. A little water and a rag would do wonders. It gets me to my point of this comment. Could you imagine the dead skin and bacteria stuck to that watch when it was removed from the grave desecrater? Does it have a permanent smell that you can't get rid of? The smell of death is distinct and hard to eliminate. It wouldn't bother me to wear a time capsule watch. 😂 I just don't want to clean it.
Very interesting. I can see some people feel uncomfortable wearing a watch that lay in a grave on the wrist of a deceased person. Obviously not your case, though.
I can't help but letting my imagination wander towards the story of a cursed watch that wants to return to the ground and puts the wearer(s) through all sorts of terrible dangers...
Dear friend, thank heaven, to this day I have not noticed any paranormal effects when wearing this watch. The only thing a little unusual is the face of someone who is interested in it (since it is not very common to see a person using one of these "vintage machines", at least in my country) and I briefly explain the extravagant history of its origin. For the rest, everything is within normal limits.
Nice weekend, Guilleume!
Wow! Pretty interesting story. I collect vintage watches and sometimes I get them covered in dead skin and dirt. I mean really caked between the lugs and the bottom of the case. They reek of rotting flesh. I can't imagine how they could get that dirty. I know people love their watches but I'm talking it would be hard to wear and sit on the wrist right dirty. A little water and a rag would do wonders. It gets me to my point of this comment. Could you imagine the dead skin and bacteria stuck to that watch when it was removed from the grave desecrater? Does it have a permanent smell that you can't get rid of? The smell of death is distinct and hard to eliminate. It wouldn't bother me to wear a time capsule watch. 😂 I just don't want to clean it.
Dear Shane,
In the case of this Flyca, I can assure you that when it came into my hands more than a decade ago, it did not present any particular smell. In fact, the expert watchmaker who sold it to me explained to me that it had been in his possession for at least 4 or 5 years and that when he got to it, he only changed the original leather strap, given that it was in a completely ruined state (but it was still preserved! WOOOW!). As you can see from the photos, the interior and its machinery are in perfect condition and its operation continues to be completely correct (approx. 1 minute deviation/day) and of course, it continues to be odorless... Hahaha!
Nice weekend, my friend!