Women's Eska Watches

Watchmaking enjoyed an upswing at the end of World War I. A number of new companies came into existence, taking advantage of the improving economic climate. Among them was Sylvan Kocher & Cie. S.A. of Grenchen, Switzerland. Kocher registered the brand name “Eska,” the phonetic spelling in French of Kocher’s initials “eS Ka.” In 1930, the company also registered the brand name “Royce” and began producing fine watches for export into the U.S.

As a manufacturer, Kocher produced a wide range of wristwatches under the Eska name that included manual and automatic models, as well as watches with full calendars, digital time displays, and mechanical watches with so-called “Reverso” cases. These watches feature a case that can be flipped over to reveal an interesting back or second face.

Though no longer in business, vintage Eska ladies’ watches still come to auction. They range in style from simple square case watches with and without diamonds, to the Study In Texture watch with its brushed steel case and fine mesh bracelet.

Quick Facts

• Other brand names registered by Eska included Amphibian, Bonostar, Budy, Cedin, Dorna, Dower, Leadership, Megalo and Protex
• Eska became a victim of what was known as the Quartz Crisis (or Quartz Revolution), a period in the 1970s and '80s referring to the introduction of quartz watches, which largely replaced mechanical watches
• Other popular vintage women's Eska watches include several types of gold coin watches, the Tanque watch, and the Mority watch