All About Dials

This was the simplest design, made from a copper disc with stamped depressions to create the lower level for the seconds hand, and used primarily on lower-grade pieces.

Single-sunk (or sunk) dials had a separate seconds bit that was soldered to the main dial. This was done so that the seconds hand could sit lower, allowing the hour hand to clear it.

Double-sunk dials were assembled from three separate pieces of different thicknesses, and were generally used on higher-grade watches. Triple-sunk dials were used on indicators.

Most watch companies made a very simple dial with bold Arabic numerals called the Blindman's Dial in response to stricter railroad standards in the 1890s. There were no distractions on it such as different colors or additional numbers, making it easier to tell the time at a glance and reducing the chances of misreading the position of the hands.

Henry Montgomery was granted a patent for a design that he called the Safety Dial while he was Inspector for the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway from 1896 to 1923. It had marginal minute numbers that were all upright (not radial like other dials), red five minute subs between the other minute markers, and a '6' inside the seconds bit.

The 24-hour dials were a requirement for the Canadian railways, which became standard in the mid 1880s. The 13 to 24-hour Arabic markers were generally inside of the 12-hour ring, and there were many variations.  Dials with combinations of Roman and Arabic characters together were common and could also be found in Montgomery styles.

Elgin, Rockford, and Waltham were the only American factories that made pocket watch wind-indicators in quantity. When the watch is fully wound the indicator hand is starting at zero, marking the passing of the hours as the mainspring unspools. Note the word "Wind" where the 24-hour marker would be is placed as a reminder.

Josiah Moorhouse emigrated to America in 1854, eventually finding work as a dial painter by Nashua and Waltham while inventing his own distinctive style. Daniel O'Hara first worked for Waltham making watch cases, pairing with Edwin Weatherbee around 1890 in what would become the O'Hara Dial Co, makers of colored watch dials.

 Louis Ferguson of Louisiana applied for a patent on his design in November of 1907, which was granted a year later. He produced porcelain dials for many local factories, and they are valuable, so check the back of the dial for the appropriate patent stamps. Hands were originally supplied with the dial and color-matched with the numerals. 

Before templates and uniform stamps became the norm, dials were painted by hand and then sealed under the final top glaze. This allowed for literally anything that the artist could imagine to be created, which usually meant bucolic scenes with many colors and themes. Most art of this kind was found on fusees before the advent of factories.

Every imaginable theme could be found on watch dials, from logos for organizations and clubs to a myriad of sports and even erotica. The numerals could be Roman or Arabic, or they could be signs, symbols or letters spelling out the name of the owner. This dial is known as a Saracen dial, complete with camels and pyramids, made by Elgin. 

Someone very clever figured out a way to use watch dials as glass negatives when shooting with a box camera, which also meant that the first examples were mirror images. Portraits were a common theme, though other images were occasionally worthy of attention, such as the colored nudes on this Model '83 Waltham.