I recently found in a Perthshire field a Swiss silver pocket watch. My hobby is metal detecting. I reckon the watch has been lying underground in the soil for about 100 years so it's not in the best of condition and will never run again. The engraving on the case is lovely and the watch is intact except for missing hands, dial and crystal. On the movement there is a large lump of very hard dark brown matter. Has anyone come across this before as I suspect I will never be able to remove it?

Welcome Howard
The world of horology is fascinating
That find sounds wonderful .
Please post a picture .
Mike

Will do Mike. Once I've sussed out how to do it!

Thanks Debbie. I will have a go at posting a photograph.