21 years: 2005 - 2026

Blog: Déposé No. 9846: Watches with handles

First published: 28 February 2013, last updated 04 June 2026.

I make additions and corrections to this web site frequently, but because they are buried somewhere on one of the pages the changes are not very noticeable, so I decided to create this blog section to highlight new material. Here below you will find part of one of the pages that I have either changed or added to significantly.

This blog entry is part of my page about the first men's wristwatches.

If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact me via my Contact Me page.

Dimier Brothers Déposé No. 9846

Curved lugs or "handles"

Déposé No. 9846 stamp in wristwatch case back: Click image to enlarge

In 1903, the Anglo-Swiss company Dimier Brothers registered a design of a wristwatch with fixed wire lugs and a leather strap. This is the earliest documentary evidence seen of watches with wire lugs and one piece leather straps.

Dimier Frères & Cie had offices in la Chaux-de-Fonds and London. The London company, Dimier Brothers & Co., from 1868 were important watch importers, You can read more about the London company of Dimier Brothers on my Sponsors Marks page at Dimier Brothers & Co. .

Evidence for this involvement of the Dimier Brothers company in the early development of the wristwatch is the legend ‘Déposé No. 9846’ (sometimes ‘DEPOSE 9846’, or even ‘DÉPOSÉ 9846’) seen in the case backs of early wristwatches as shown here, sometimes with the Swiss Federal Cross symbol.

Déposé is short for Modèle Déposé, which is Swiss/French for ‘Registered Design’, a design that was registered with a government office in order to provide copyright protection.

An author's or designer's legal copyright exists for designs whether they are registered or not, but it can be difficult to prove without evidence of the date the design was created; hence, an entry in a register is a useful official record. A modèle déposé is a register of a design, a pattern or appearance of an item. It is not a patent, a patent is granted for a novel concept which does not have a specific embodiment.

Swiss Modèle Déposé No. 9846, July 1903: Click image to enlarge

The picture to the right here shows the official Swiss record for Modèle Déposé No. 9846. It is dated 29 July 1903. The description is very short compared to that of a patent, because it is the representation of the design that is being recorded. The description simply says ‘Montre à bracelet-courroie’ or ‘Wristwatch with bracelet-belt’ and shows a picture of the design.

The exact translation of Montre à bracelet-courroie is important. A montre is a watch, à means with, and bracelet is something that goes around a wrist. The term montre-bracelet had been used for wristwatches, particularly ladies' wristwatches, since they had become fashionable and accessible to the general public, rather than just wealthy aristocrats, in the 1880s. The important word in this registration is courroie, a belt. The addition of courroie or belt, implying a leather strap, is clearly intended to distinguish this design from a montre bracelet, a watch on a metal bracelet which ladies had been wearing for hundreds of years.

So it can be said that the specific design features being registered were the use of a leather wrist strap, somewhat like a belt, and by implication the ‘anses’, the handles or wire lugs, that attach the watch case to the leather wrist strap.

An interesting feature of the strap design is the flared centre section. This approximately covers the same area as the watch case. Since there is no description its purpose can only be guessed at. It might have been to prevent any part of the watch case from touching the wrist for some reason, perhaps concerns about allergies, or about perspiration tarnishing silver watch cases. Or, which seems more likely, it would not have been possible to register a design that was just a straight leather strap, because that would be too simple and obvious, so this more elaborate design was conceived just so that it could be registered. Once a registered design number had been secured, that fact could be used in advertising and to gain a hold over wristwatch manufacturers.

Registered Design 405488

British Registered Design 405488, February 1903
Crown © Copyright, use allowed for non-commercial research

There is a second number in the picture of the Swiss Modèle Déposé 9846, the number 405488, underneath the main block of text containing the registration number 9846.

N^o 405488 is the number of a British Registered Design, a design that was registered in Britain for the purposes of copyright protection in the same way as the Swiss/French Modèle Déposé discussed above.

The picture here shows the entry in the British Board of Trade register. With the exception of a flared section of the strap behind the buckle, it is identical to the Swiss Modèle Déposé 9846. The watch shown mounted on the strap in the picture is crossed out to show that it is not part of the Registered Design. This is the full entry from the ledger of representations; in common with all registered designs, there is no text description.

The design was registered by Georges Dimier, trading as Dimier Brothers and Company at 46 Cannon Street, London.

Design N^o 405488 was registered on 20 February 1903, six months before the Swiss register entry for Modèle Déposé No. 9846 in July 1903. This suggests that it was the London branch of Dimier Brothers that came up with the idea, had it registered in London and subsequently in Switzerland. The company was no doubt reacting to the demand for wristwatches from British military officers and ladies.

The period of copyright protection afforded by the British registration was initially five years. This was twice extended, as allowed under the section 53 of the Patents and Designs Act 1907, on 23 January 1908 and 17 May 1912, for two further periods of five years each, taking the period of protection up to May 1917.

Dimier Frères notice 1906

By 1906, the market for men's wristwatches with wire lugs and leather wrist straps was starting to accelerate and Dimier Frères felt they needed to reassert their rights. The announcement shown in the next figure was published in October 1906. It translates as:

Dimier advert 1906: Click image to enlarge

In order to avoid prosecution, we inform watch manufacturers that the watches with heads BRACELETS with curved handles allowing the use of a single piece of leather or strap are our model and our intellectual property, registered in July 1903 and that we will rigorously pursue any copy.

For royalties to be paid on this item, contact our Offices, 24, rue Léopold Robert, La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Dimier Fréres & Cie

This notice gives more details of Dimier Frères claim than the registered design. The wire lugs (‘anses’ or handles) are designed to be curved (recourbées) or bent downwards, allowing the use of a wrist strap of a single piece of leather pulled through the lugs. The downward curving lugs makes the path of the strap around the back of the watch case follow a natural curve.

Judging from the very large number of early wristwatches that are stamped in their case backs with the legend "Déposé No. 9846", the claim that Dimier Brothers originated the design and the threat of action against anyone who didn't pay them royalties for making wristwatches with fixed wire must have been taken seriously by Swiss watch manufacturers at the time.

RD 499803 buckle design

British Registered Design 499803, April 1907
Crown © Copyright, use allowed for non-commercial research

Underside showing how the strap fits

Watch straps with the same flared centre shape as the British and Swiss Registered Designs are sometimes seen with the British Registered Design number ‘No. 405488’ stamped onto the leather strap, and with another British Registered Design number, ‘No. 499803’, stamped on the buckle.

Buckles stamped with the Registered Design number 499803 are an unusual design, with two centre bars instead of the more usual single bar.

The British Board of Trade records show that this unusual design of buckle was registered on 11 April 1907 by Georges Dimier trading as Dimier Brothers and Company, 46 Cannon Street, London.

The purpose of the two centre bars is to allow the buckle to be fitted to the strap without being stitched into it.

The Dimier design from 1903, Modèle Déposé No. 9846, Registered Design No. 405488, shows a strap with a circular section the same size as the watch case in the centre. There are only two ways such a strap could be fitted to a watch with fixed wire lugs, either the buckle would have to stitched to the strap after the strap had been fitted to the watch, or the buckle would have to be designed to fit to the strap without stitching, which is exactly what the Registered Design No. 499803 buckle does. The photograph here shows how it fits to the strap.

The same design was registered by Georges Dimier in Switzerland on 15 June 1910 as Modèle Déposé No 18217, ‘Boucles de courroies’. Interestingly, the record shows that there were two designs registered, but unfortunately there are no other details showing the second design.

When a design was registered, the registered proprietor had copyright during five years from the date of registration under section 53 (1) of the Patents and Designs Act, 1907. Section 52 (2) allowed an extension for a second period of five years and the copyright of Registered Design number 499803 was extended on 13 March 1912. Section 52 (3) allowed a third extension of five years and the copyright was extended in November 1916 by Georges and Amalia Dimier trading as Dimier Brothers and Company, 46 Cannon Street, London, watch importers and exporters.