Kriegsmarine Kriegsmarine Brass Body Clock WW1 wilhelm kophamel

[Rosco]

Hi there,

I recently found this little gem at a local jumblesale in Scotland. I have seen similar clocks on the internet, but they are all marked KM (Kriegsmarine), however my one is stamped with a crown and an "M" below. Also on the dial is the name "Wilhelm Kophamel Kiel" and the serial code "4325".

Can anyone tell me anything more about it, does the name denote the boat it was on? Also, is it as rare as the Kriegsmarine examples?

Any information greatfully received.

Many Thanks

[Gordon Williamson]

Kaiserliche Marine clock similar in style to the Kieninger & Obergfell clock for the Kriegsmarine.

Very nice indeed but I suspect it has been altered by the addition of "feet" so that it can stand on a desk or shelf. Never seen that style before but it does look like it started life as a bulkhead clock, though I'm the first to admit I don't know much about Imperial Navy Clocks.

There was an auction sale in Edinburgh a year or two back of Imperial navy brass "bulkhead" clocks which were reputed to have been removed from some of the ships at Scapa Flow before they were scuttled, and although they didn't make the same sort of prices I've seen Kriegsmarine ones go for they still got very respectable prices ( I seem to remember them being around ?800-?1000)

[Rosco]

Kaiserliche Marine clock similar in style to the Kieninger & Obergfell clock for the Kriegsmarine.

Very nice indeed but I suspect it has been altered by the addition of "feet" so that it can stand on a desk or shelf. Never seen that style before but it does look like it started life as a bulkhead clock, though I'm the first to admit I don't know much about Imperial Navy Clocks.

There was an auction sale in Edinburgh a year or two back of Imperial navy brass "bulkhead" clocks which were reputed to have been removed from some of the ships at Scapa Flow before they were scuttled, and although they didn't make the same sort of prices I've seen Kriegsmarine ones go for they still got very respectable prices ( I seem to remember them being around ?800-?1000)

Thank you for your reply, it is much appreciated. Someone has indeed added some wooden feet to the case unfortunately. I'm struggling to find the name on the front anywhere.

[Gordon Williamson]

Wilhelm Kophamel wasn't the name of a ship, its the maker of the clock. There were several clock makers in Kiel. I've seen others by Kophamel.

I should also just mention that as well as having the feet added, it has been over-enthusiastically polished. The dial would originally have had a matt silvered finish with black point inlaid into the numerals etc. The casing, like the Kriegsmarine equivalents would originally have had been black painted. The removal of the black painted finish is very common as once their shipboard life was over, many people through whose hands these passed would have preferred the look of a brass rather than black ships clock. These things all effect its value and the pieces that I saw go through auction were in working order and superb condition.

Nevertheless you have a lovely clock and if you got it at a jumble sale, I guess you probably got it at a very attractive price that would make most of us very jealous !

[afx20000]

Rosco,

I like these clocks very much. Could you remove the wooden feet? Please show us more pictures of your great clock.

In the meantime I found a picture of this clock which looks similar to yours.