It would be interesting to see the final price if the owner lets it go to the end.

Hamilton Rectangular Auction

Is this indicative of what will be required, when the final price makes itself known?

Quite possibly , but Hamilton prices have been somewhat depressed for the last two years. However, the most highly prized models (and this is one of them) don't seem to be affected too much. I hope the auction goes to the end to see the true market value of this rarity.

Am I looking at the images wrong, or are the lugs very worn down? Too bad that this dial was re-done in this god-awful green...

I have a feeling it will not hit the stratosphere... but we'll see.

I am also one of those who prefer a pale green or gray to the luminous of a refinished dial, but unless I'm mistaken, weren't many radium dials originally such a bright green?

Also, is this one of those Hamilton dials in which the numerals and markings were engraved into the metal dial and filled with black enamel, similar to the engraved bezel models, Meadowbrook, Langley...?

Lets have a guess at the final price -- I bid 10K USD.


DM

I hope our co-moderator, Bill, won't mind if I post a comparison photo of his Rectangle. His does not have any luminous, and this look works well. I think that this watch indeed had the markings engraved into the metal of the dial and filled with black enamel, so one could have it refinished as a "skeleton dial". I've seen the Langley done like this also.

The Rectangular is a "strange bird."

There's little doubt that it's a great rarity but because it never appeared in any Hamilton catalogs (it did appear as an insert however) or in Rene's book, there are people that don't consider it a standard Hamilton issue. That should change as people become more educated regarding Hamilton's production watches. Interestingly, when I've spoken to old-time collectors about them (when I was looking to acquire one), many of the older collectors could give a "hoot" about them other than as a curiosity.

I was desirous of having one for years and when I finally had one in my hands, though big by late 1920's standards, and hand-chased, and 18K gold, I found the watch somewhat awkward and lacking the grace of Hamilton's other watches from that time period. Example - there's currently a yellow Oakmont (1931 and only 431 made in yellow gold) on E-bay that I personally find more beautiful in it's elegance, style and composition than I find the Rectangular (IMHO).

It will certainly go for a good price; there's little question about that (though the lugs do seem overly worn) and should be the highlight of any Hamilton and or vintage watch collector.

It's a fine watch and an unquestionably attractive one but there are other rarities that are every bit as beautiful if not more so, and can be purchased for significantly less.

Regards,

Will
PS - For more information on the Rectangular, please click on this link to go to my site - Rectangular

How did Hamilton, or their case makers, manage to make any profit on small runs of a watch such as 247 for this model.

Hi Dan:

Regarding your question about Hamilton making a profit on "such a small run," I don't think that was Hamilton's objective. Hamilton had sold numerous watches up until 1927, the year that the Rectangular was introduced - indeed, their 986, 986A and their 987 men's wristwatch "run" up until the Rectangular's introduction was 43,963 units (this number does not include the O-sized Cushions). Significantly less than Waltham and Elgin but certainly not an embarrassing number for a high-end product and whose cost reflected their quality.

Taking the numbers above, Hamilton was doing well enough in the sales arena but what they needed at the time was an "up-scale" product that would get Hamilton some "notice" and I believe that the Rectangular was it. Though records are minimal, I believe that the Rectangular was manufactured mostly for upscale stores i.e., Tiffany in New York and JE Caldwell in Philadelphia. The Rectangular's job, so to speak, was to place Hamilton in the premium watch field to compete with the likes of Patek, VC and Ekegren. All Hamilton watches were of premium quality but prior to the Rectangular, there was no "flagship" until the Rectangular's introduction.

In the next production year, the 1928 Meadowbrook served the same purpose. Early Hamilton ads heralded the Meadowbrook as a "prestige" wristwatch and "the ideal model for corporate presentations." Its reputation as a "fine watch" was further enhanced with the offering of a hand-made platinum variation which sold for $400, an incredibly high price in 1928. The platinum Meadowbrook was highly advertised and like the Rectangular, few were actually manufactured (17 in total), but it served as a successful marketing tool that further contributed to Hamilton's reputation as America's finest watch manufacturer (Hamilton also made an 18K Meadowbrook as well - but that's another story).

This is one reason why the Rectangular is an important watch for collectors - it represents Hamilton's initial foray into the premium market, an area where Hamilton staked their reputation for rest of its US production history.

Just my thought for what they're worth.

Regards,

Will

Dan,

I have seen 2 Rectangulars in person in the last few years... and I do not think this one is nearly in the same league. Look very closely at the bezel on Bill's example which Will posted. The lugs on the one for sale are very worn. While I happen to love the look of the Rectangular, If I was going to pay $10K (GULP!!) for one, it would not be this one. Therefore, IF you plan to bid that for this one, I bet you will be the winner. I imagine the selling price will be in the $5k-7 range, even though to me this one is not worth it... but I guess if 2 or more people want it bad enough, I could be very wrong. I do know it will be interesting to watch.

Regards,

Nope. After examining the lugs carefully it is just too worn. The 10K USD was my best guess a few days back, but now sanity prevails and I'd guess less ! - nearer 5K USD.

DM

The crown looks worn, too.

My guess on the price is maybe just a bit above the opening price but less than 3000.00.

Here is the dial for the Rectangle. Notice that Hamilton did not make this dial.

Don

Thanks, Don. Say, I was right, that the dial does have inlaid enamel markings...That makes refinishing easier.

Hi Samie:

The seller told me that he has already received a bid for $3,600.00 so my guess is that it will likely go for more than that.

I suppose people will be "snipping" the watch, which is the act of "last minute (or more likely last second) bidding, typically done by a bidding service.

Regards,

Will

Will guess that shows how little i know..

Hi Samie:

Not at all - yours is a very reasonable guess. The problem with things like this is that the watch is incredibly rare, and as such, most collectors don't have an example in their collection. A "poor" example is leagues better than "no" example (by the way, I don't think that this Rectangular is a "poor" example, it's just not a "great" example).

I have a very poor example of the green 14K gold-filled Barrel "B" (Barrel "B" link). I wish I had a better example but I don't, and as such, I am happy to have the one I have (only 272 where made so it is very rare). Someday, I'll find another in better condition and I'll upgrade.

The objective of my collection is to have an example of every Hamilton, in every variation, made from 1917 until 1936. I pretty much have my collection completed and so now I am in the upgrading phase of collecting. Sure, there are some extreme rarities that I still do not have but in time I'll find them, and in the interim, I am making my collection a better collection by having better examples. And most importantly, I am having tons of fun in the process.

Thanks,

Will

Absolutely right thing to do Will - it has to be FUN, this collecting thing.

DM

I looked at the dial specs which Donald posted, and something caught my eye. Do the numbers "12-10-32" near the bottom of the drawing represent the date this dial was designed? If so, then is the Rectangular not actually from 1927?

Will -- I read your posting about your green Barrel B. I owned a terrific example of the green Barrel B which included an unusual raised numeral ALL solid silver dial. (The numbers were raised silver and part of the dial, but coated in gold.) I had showed my Barrel B to Rene and Bill a few years ago in Dearborn -- if memory serves Rene told me that my dial variation was a rare but original one. Frankly, I sold it because the Barrel B was too small for me to wear (because of the dial being small, it looks significantly smaller than the basic Barrel, which I also sold because it was too small to wear). In retrospect, selling my Barrel B was likely a mistake. If you want to know the current owner, email me... perhaps he can provide you with a better photo for your site? If nothing else, you might want to show this dial variation... though I have seen similar raised numeral solid silver dials on Cushions also.

Regards,

I looked at the dial specs which Donald posted, and something caught my eye. Do the numbers "12-10-32" near the bottom of the drawing represent the date this dial was designed? If so, then is the Rectangular not actually from 1927?

Because the company originally purchased the dials, the date is most likely when Hamilton put the drawing into their record system.