21 years: 2005 - 2026

Sterling Silver and Gold Buckles

Copyright © David Boettcher 2005 - 2026 all rights reserved.

To increase the authenticity of my replica Great War era watch straps for wristwatches with silver and gold cases I decided to make replicas of original period sterling silver and gold buckles, and also to make silver and gold fittings for leather Albert fobs.

How authentic are my straps with hallmarked sterling silver buckles? Good enough. A watch was advertised by a dealer, who I won't mention, with one of my straps. The advertisement said ‘Fitted with what appears to be the original leather strap, which is still in incredible condition. The solid silver buckle with London hallmarks for 1913 is exceptional and even has a tiny hallmark on the tang.’ The date letter for 1913 is an ‘s’, which is also the date letter for 2017, the year when I made this buckle. It is not my intention to deceive people into thinking that my straps with sterling silver buckles are actually originals - my sponsor's mark is clearly visible on the buckle. But this instance shows that they are convincing replicas.

I make the replica buckles as close as possible to originals made during the First World War of 1914 to 1918. They are handmade by me and hallmarked at the London Assay Office, exactly as the originals were hallmarked over one hundred years ago. If you have a trench watch from the First World War with a gold or silver case, these buckles are the perfect finishing touch to one of my replica straps.

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

Hallmarking in Britain has its origins in an Act of King Edward in the year 1300, over 700 years ago, and the this has continued in an unbroken ever since. Gold and silver wares have been assayed and hallmarked at Goldsmiths' Hall since 1478, when workers were first required to bring their items to the hall to be marked. This where the term ‘hallmark’ originates, and Goldsmiths' hall in London is where my gold and silver items are assayed and hallmarked.

I am now a registered goldsmith and silversmith with my own sponsor's mark entered at the London Assay Office, so that I can have my gold and silver buckles authentically hallmarked. There are few people who can say that they not only own an item of hallmarked gold or silver but also know the silversmith or goldsmith who made it. You can join them today!

When I started making these, a watch collector bought a strap with a sterling silver buckle, and then a few days after receiving it he ordered a second strap; explaining his second purchase he wrote I love the strap so much I ordered the other version!

Sterling Silver Buckles

I make hand made sterling silver buckles in 925 sterling silver, they are then hallmarked by the London Assay Office with a full set of traditional struck English hallmarks - just like their predecessors were around a hundred years ago. They are assayed and hallmarked in the over 700 year old tradition of British hallmarking by the London Assay Office at Goldsmiths' Hall, where British hallmarking began.

Silver has been prized for thousands of years as a precious metal because of its intrinsic beauty and corrosion resistance. When polished it has a bright white appearance unlike any other metal; it makes any steel, including stainless steel and even chrome plate, look dull and grey. If you have a watch with a silver case, a strap with a standard metal buckle doesn't do it full justice, but one of my straps with one of these sterling silver buckles makes the perfect accompaniment to your Great War era trench watch, you won't regret it.

I usually have a stock of replica trench watch strap designs made up with sterling silver buckles and 12mm straps.

Making Buckles

My first attempt at copying an original sterling silver hallmarked 1918 buckle was done by entirely by hand and eye using just jewellers pliers. I immediately realised that it was not easy to make bends in the right places like this, and it was impossible to make nice regular even bends. After some head scratching I designed and made a small machine to make the bends neatly and in the right places.

The production versions are better than my first attempt, although that eventually turned out well enough that I had it hallmarked and I wear it on one of my own watches. The buckles look authentically hand made and "artisan", just like the originals. Just in case you can't tell, in the pictures my replica buckle is the one in the foreground.

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Designs of Buckles

I have made replicas of two original period sterling silver buckles, one from 1918, the other from 1907. My replica buckles are made in exactly the same way, and assayed and hallmarked by the London Assay Office at Goldsmiths' Hall, so that they are as close to original period buckles as is possible.

Type GW ‘Great War’ Model

The type of buckle shown here, a ‘centre bar pin buckle’ is the most common design found on early wristwatches. It is ‘self keepered’, i.e. it doesn't need a separate keeper for the strap end to be tucked into.

These original buckles are quite rare, unfortunately they seem to have often been discarded when the strap was replaced. I have a small number including the one on my Rotherhams English wristwatch, which has London Assay Office hallmarks for 1908 to 1909, and my replicas are accurate copies of these.

The original buckle that I used as a model for my sterling silver buckles is shown in the background of the picture here. It is hallmarked with London Assay Office hallmarks for 1918/1919. It is a style of buckle that was used throughout the First World War (WW1) and I call it my Great War model, or Type GW buckle for short.

I keep in stock ready to purchase straps with Type GW hallmarked sterling silver buckles with 12mm straps.

Type GW authentic replica First World War 12mm buckles in 9 carat gold are now in stock again.

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Gold Buckles

I make Type GW buckles in nine carat gold. These are hallmarked at the London Assay Office in exactly the same way as were the originals over a century ago, with a full set of traditional hallmarks including the sign of a crown for gold instead of the walking lion passant of sterling silver.

Please note that these are only stocked in 12mm widths, that is to fit a strap 12mm wide.

The image here shows three yellow gold Type GW buckles and a T-bar fitting for a leather Albert fob. The buckle bottom left is in 9 carat rose or pink gold - it's one colour but seems to be referred to interchangeably as either rose gold or pink gold.

Please bear in mind that computer displays do not reproduce colour with 100% fidelity, so the actual yellow or rose / pink colour can be slightly different from how it appears on screen. In actuality, the buckles that I have made in rose gold match the colour of rose gold watch cases, such as Rolex cases from the 1920s and 1930s, very well indeed.

Original gold buckles that I have seen are small in both overall size and wire diameter compared to my Type GW design. This was probably done to keep the cost down, but they look wimpy on a man's strap. I prefer my gold buckles to be made in 2.0mm diameter wire as shown here, which increases the cost of the gold. But they look ‘right’, and I always think that if you are going to do something, you might as well do it right.

Prices

One of my replica trench watch strap designs with a 12mm strap and a hallmarked Type GW nine carat gold buckle is currently £205 (out of stock), plus postage & packing using a tracked service of £10.05 in the UK, £12.00 overseas.

Nine carat Type GW yellow gold buckles are now back in stock. Individual buckles without straps can be purchased for £175 (out of stock), plus postage & packing using a tracked service of £10.05 in the UK, £12.00 overseas.

First Customers' Reactions

The first three nine carat gold buckles that I made in 2016 were in response to a request from a Danish collector shown in the photograph here.

When the potential order was discussed I contemplated making the buckles in 1.5mm wire because of the cost of gold, to keep down the cost. However, I said to the customer that I thought that to look right on a man's watch the gold buckles would have to be the same size as my sterling silver buckles, and made of 2.0mm thick gold wire.

Happily the customer agreed, and the buckles in the picture are the result. The customer was pleased with the outcome, telling me:

Hi David,

I received the watch straps with the 9 carat buckles Friday afternoon. The buckles look really great, excellent craftsmanship. I love the way the hallmarks are made on the buckles! And yes, this is really the right size of a buckle on a man's watch strap! I am more than pleased !

Thank you ! Best regards Jens

All my 9 carat gold buckles are made from 2 millimetre diameter wire because it just looks right. The pin that goes through the strap is 1.5 millimetre because a 2 millimetre diameter pin is too thick, a 1.5 millimetre pin looks right and is plenty strong enough.

The second customer for one of my hallmarked gold buckles was a collector in the Netherlands. He wanted a strap with a gold buckle to go with his gold Angora Watch Company wristwatch with hermetic case made by the Borgel company of Geneva.

The resulting strap is shown in the photograph here fitted to the watch. I am happy to say that this customer was also pleased with the outcome, saying:

Hi David!

Do I think the strap is beautiful? I think it is magnificent!!!

Kind Regards, Bart

If you want to order one of my designs of straps with a gold buckle, please email me with the details of what you want and where you live.

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My Unique Guarantee

Gold and silver have been prized for thousands of years because of their intrinsic beauty. Neither rust or oxidise. When polished silver has a whiter appearance than any other metal, it makes any steel, including stainless steel, and even chrome plate, look dull and grey. This is due to its electron configuration, which results in it reflecting all electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths longer than 3000 angstroms, which is in the ultraviolet range. All visible light, wavelengths between 4000 and 7000 angstroms, is reflected, resulting in the white colour of the pure metal. Silver does not oxidise, but it can form a surface layer of silver sulphide which is black - that's what photographs used to be made from and is why you need one of my polishing cloths.

My gold and sterling silver buckles are made from solid gold or silver, so there is no plating to wear through or flake off. the First World War era buckles that I have replicated (which you can see in the pictures) look as good today as they did when they were made around 100 years ago, you can't say the same about any chrome plated buckle or watch case. I can confidently say, in fact I guarantee (excluding damage and excessive polishing), that my gold and sterling silver buckles will look as good in 100 years time as when I made them. There are not many things you can say that about. And even if you do manage to wear out the leather strap, you can always send the buckle back to me to be stitched into a new strap.

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The Hallmarks

My sterling silver and gold buckles are assayed and hallmarked in just the same way as the ones I am copying, at Goldsmiths' Hall in London, where silversmiths have been taking their work to be tested and hallmarked since 1478, which is how the term "hallmark" originated. If you want to know more about the over-700 year old tradition and legal requirements of hallmarking, see my page about Assay and Hallmarking.

To send items for hallmarking I had to register my details with the assay office and "enter" a sponsor's punch mark. The picture here shows the hallmarks on one of my buckles. Reading from the left the marks are:

• My sponsor's mark, my initials "DBB" in a surround with angular ends, first registered with the London Assay Office in 2012.
• The lion passant, the walking lion that has been the standard mark of sterling silver since 1544 in the reign of King Henry VIII.
• The 925 mark which indicates the silver purity (sterling = 92.5% silver), required since 1975.
• The leopard's head, the standard mark used on sterling silver by the London Assay Office since 1300.
• The assay office date letter, in this case an "o" for 2013. Since 1975 the date letter shows the calendar year.

The form of these hallmarks goes back to 1544 in the reign of King Henry VIII; the one with the six wives. If he were alive today, King Henry (who died 28 January 1547) would recognise the validity of these hallmarks and know that this was legal sterling silver. He wouldn't recognise the additional 925 mark, but that is the only change that has been made to these traditional English hallmarks in over 470 years.

Dealer's Notice

Because I am now officially a "maker and dealer supplying precious metal items" I have to by law display this notice produced by the British Hallmarking Council explaining the approved hallmarks. Click on the thumbnail to get the full size version. If you want a fuller explanation of British hallmarks you will find it on my British hallmarks page, or for British hallmarks applied to imported items on my British import hallmarks page.

Cleaning and Storing Silver

Silver doesn't oxidise like base metals. It will however pick up sulphur from the atmosphere and form a black layer of silver sulphide on the surface, this is called tarnish.

For cleaning my sterling silver buckles, or anything else made of silver, I find that the polishing cloths made by Town Talk are really good. They are ideal for cleaning my sterling silver buckles, and also for silver watch cases, because there is no messy liquid to get onto the leather strap or into the watch case, just a rub with the dry cloth brings up the silver beautifully clean and with a really good shine.

Town Talk have been making polishing cloths since 1895, that's 128 years, so they have really got the hang of it. Town Talk's high quality cotton silver polishing cloths are impregnated with silver cleaner and an anti-tarnish agent. They remove tarnish from silver leaving it really sparkling, and the anti-tarnish agent helps to keep it that way for longer.

I find the 5 x 7 inch (125 x 175 mm) Town Talk polishing cloths are the perfect size for polishing the silver cases of trench watches, and for polishing my Type GW hallmarked sterling silver buckles. You can use the “Add to Cart” button underneath the picture to add one of these to your order for just £3.30.

Have you noticed that silver items go dull when they are in storage? Make sure your fine silver items stay shining bright by storing them with a Town Talk Silver Storage Strip. The Strips absorb atmospheric pollutants and help keep your silver shining bright. Store your silver item with a Silver Storage Strips in an enclosed space. The Storage Strips do not prevent tarnishing but slow it down and they do need to be replaced from time to time depending on storage conditions. Town Talk Silver Storage Strips come in packs of 36. You can use the "Add to Cart" button underneath the picture to add one of these packs to your order for just £2.50.

If you are going to purchase only one of these, choose the polishing cloth. The Storage Strips do not prevent tarnishing; they slow it down but you will eventually need to polish.