Along with other industries, watchmaking enjoyed an upswing at the end of World War I. A number of new companies came into existence, taking advantage of the improving economic climate. Among them was Sylvan Kocher & Cie. S.A. of Grenchen, Switzerland. Kocher registered the brand name “Eska,” the phonetic spelling in French of Kocher’s initials “eS Ka.”
In 1922, the company was established in the neighboring town of Selzach, Switzerland. Later, in 1930, the company also registered the brand name “Royce” and began producing fine watches for export into the U.S.
As a manufacturer, Kocher produced a wide range of wristwatches under the Eska name that included manual and automatic models, as well as watches with full calendars, digital time displays, and mechanical watches with so-called “Reverso” cases. These watches feature a case that can be flipped over to reveal an interesting back or second face.
Gold coin watches were a particular specialty of Eska, and they also excelled in producing colorful polychrome cloisonné dials depicting nautical and historical scenes.
Quick Facts
- Eska went out of business in the 1980s, but vintage Eska and Royce watches are still widely available today
- Other brand names registered by Eska included Amphibian, Bonostar, Budy, Cedin, Dorna, Dower, Leadership, Megalo and Protex
- Eska became a victim of what was known as the Quartz Crisis (or Quartz Revolution), a period in the 1970s and '80s referring to the introduction of quartz watches, which largely replaced mechanical watches
