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HODINKEE RadioFinding J.P. Morgan's Long-Lost Million-Dollar Pocket Watch
The most complicated British watch ever made had dropped off the radar; could Daniel Miller find it?
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The show returns for 2022 with a very special episode featuring a chat with returning guest and friend-of-the-show, Daniel Miller. Daniel is a business reporter and journalist for the Los Angeles Times and he recently published a story about his prolonged hunt to find a very special pocket watch commissioned by the famous banker, J. P. Morgan. The watch had been made in 1909 by the British firm J. Player & Sons and had traded hands several times before disappearing in the late 1970s – and that's where Daniel started to work.
It's a fabulous story, highlighted by a remarkable cast of characters that would eventually lead Daniel down a series of rabbit holes as he connected industrialists with collectors, magnates, descendants of royalty, dealers, and even a sultan for good measure. It's nothing short of an absolute treat to have Daniel on the show again as he provides an inside track on his hunt, plenty of behind-the-scenes tidbits, and even a first-hand retelling of how this story ends.
This is not one to skip and it's a great way to kick off what is going to be a fantastic year for HODINKEE Radio. Thanks so much for listening.
Show Notes
1:28
Larger Than Life Podcast
1:45
The Hunt for J.P. Morgan's Million-Dollar Pocket Watch (LA Times)
3:03
SJX's story on J.P. Morgan's pocket watch
3:33
Additional background from Carl Player
3:34
Carl Player's Instagram
11:15
The Graves Supercomplication
28:27
Asprey of London
32:18
The Breguet 282
42:26
Breitling Chronomat 769
44:22
Daniel Miller on Twitter
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