
Wristwatches · Wristwatch
Piaget wristwatch, USA 1882 Liberty Head Ten Dollar Coin Watch, circa 1980s
- Maker / attribution
- Piaget (brand / maker)
- Date
- c. 1980s
- Historical period
- Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
- Country of origin
- United States
- Object type
- Wristwatch
- Materials / technique
- 18k pink gold
- Dimensions
- diameter 27.5 mm
- Auction house
- Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva
- Lot
- Lot 392-30
- Credit line
- Auction lot record: LOT 30, Hong Kong November 28th-29th 2026
- Catalogue title (original)
- PIAGET, USA 1882 LIBERTY HEAD TEN DOLLAR COIN WATCH, 18K GOLD (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva (lot Lot 392-30), this is a wristwatch by Piaget, made in United States, dated c. 1980s. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: 18k pink gold. Recorded dimensions: diameter 27.5 mm. The record is illustrated with 4 photographs.
Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.
Catalogue description
Antiquorum catalogue description
A very fine and rare, 18K pink gold manual winding wristwatch, crafted from a USA 1882 liberty head $10 dollar Gold coin. The dial is revealed by pressing a concealed button integrated into the reeded edge of the coin.
Lot specifications (Antiquorum)
Model: USA 1882 Liberty Head Ten Dollar Coin Watch; Case No.: 125; Bracelet: leather strap with 18K pink gold Piaget buckle; Caliber: 4P; Diameter: 27.5mm; Weight: 24gr. (approx.); Signature: dial, case and movement; Accessories: Hang tag
Inscriptions & marks
dial, case and movement
Historical context
Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.
Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.
Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology
Atlas type guide
Wristwatches
Bracelet watches were worn by women from the early nineteenth century — Breguet made one for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, in 1810–12 — but the wristwatch only became a man's instrument with military use and aviation in the early twentieth century. Between the World Wars it overtook the pocket watch; the 1920s and 1930s brought rectangular Art Deco cases, water-resistant cases and the first automatic winding systems.
After 1945 the wristwatch became a carrier of identity — dress watches, sports and dive watches, chronographs, calendars — produced by Swiss, American, Japanese, German, Soviet and Chinese industries. The quartz revolution after 1969 and the mechanical renaissance since the 1990s, including the rise of independent watchmakers, complete the story.
What to look for
- The reference number (between the lugs or inside the case back) and serial number, the starting point for dating.
- The calibre: its maker and number are often stamped under the dial or on the bridge.
- Originality of dial, hands and crown — refinished ('redial') dials are common.
- Case material marks: 18K/750, 14K/585, stainless steel, gold-filled, plated.
Dating clues
- Wire-lug cases: before c. 1925.
- Water-resistant screw-down cases: from 1926.
- Quartz movements: from 1969; sapphire crystals widespread after c. 1980.
General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.
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