Looking for possible information on this pocket watch which may have a connection to the Great War

[WMVI]

I'm a watchmaker and picked this up at a flea market. It's not very high quality as far as pocket watches go and it looks like the hallmarks are supposed to look like sterling marks but were there to make it seem as if it was silver even though it isn't. Based on the movement/design this pocket watch likely was produced around the beginning of the 20th century give or take a decade. I normally wouldn't take much interest in a pocket watch of this quality but the crude inscriptions inside were very interesting to me.

 

The dial and style indicates it was most likely made for the Ottoman market. 

 

It has inscriptions inside which are hard to make out with 100% certainty but it looks like this has something to do with a soldier in WWI, or is at least made to appear that way. The inside of the case near the crystal has a cross and the words "God Mitt Uns" and "July 1914" next to that. On the inside of the caseback next to the movement it seems to say "Prussian Guard" "Frits Rechenhimer" "I INT" "2 Berthllion" (maybe Battalion? Doesn't quite seem to be spelled right though) and "167" (or possibly 467?)

 

The outside of the case also has what appears to be a crudely inscribed Arabic character (?) On the shield.

 

I'm not sure if I read all of the inscriptions right as some of them seem nonsensical. I'm also confused by the Arabic dial in addition to partial German "God Mitt Uns" (instead of "Gott") and English writing. Also Frits isn't the typical spelling. Some of the nonsense could potentially be due to the person not being super literate or good at writing I suppose. But it definitely seems like it must have an interesting history.

 

It is also possible it was inscribed falsely to look like it belonged to a soldier, although it seems that most fake militaria I've personally seen tries to make more iconic or historically significant aspects to it than this.

 

Was just wondering if anyone has any takes on the possible history on this?

[WMVI]

Some additional photos

[Interested]

IMO it says "Prussian Guard", but I can't decipher the remainder.

Looks to me like it was for the Turkish market, what does the movement look like?

[Interested]

Now I can see "Gott mit uns" in the cross - God be with us.

And there's a name in there - Fritz Reikenhimer ??

[WMVI]

7 minutes ago, Interested said:

IMO it says "Prussian Guard", but I can't decipher the remainder.

Looks to me like it was for the Turkish market, what does the movement look like?

Movement is a pretty standard low grade pin lever escapement

[MikB]

I'd've expected anyone familiar with German to have inscribed 'Juli', not 'July'. So the whole thing looks like a right birdsnest of possibilities to me.

[AOK4]

The name doesn't seem like a German name either (no similarities whatsoever in the Verlustlisten or on ancestry). Weird, very weird.

[Interested]

And would a Prussian Guard inscribe "Prussian Guard"?  Perhaps it was taken from a Prussian Guard by someone else?

The Advance/Retard lever seems to be bilingual - Slow/Fast and Advance/Retard. Doesn't help to identify Country of Origin though. 

[TullochArd]

I have to agree with your interpretation of the scratchy engraving. 

All I can add is that there was (not surprisingly) a 167th Regiment in the Ottoman Army during the Great War.  It was formed in 1914 and was part of the 57th Infantry Division and obviously organised on German lines.  My understanding is these regiments were more akin to a British Brigade with 3/4 battalions so there would have been a 2nd Battalion.  The age of the watch and the presence of many Germans in the pre-War Ottoman Army rings true.

The watch strikes me as the sort of item that would be acquired locally, and rather crudely prepared, for presentation to an individual on departure. It has been dedicated by someone clearly unfamiliar with the Latin alphabet and probably copying from a hand written note.  I have seen similar well intentioned engraving efforts in the Middle East and (more bizarrely) some disastrous inking examples from Hong Kong Tattoo parlours ........ all mis-read from notes.

For what it's worth I reckon it's far too rough to be a fake.

Edited 26 October , 2023 by TullochArd
"gooder" English sorted.

[knittinganddeath]

Some of my thoughts (which OP will have seen on another forum but which I thought might be of interest here):

-I do not recall ever seeing a German write a capital G like that. To my mind, it's an Anglo/American way of forming the letter but I would very much like to know what @AOK4 @GreyC or @charlie2 think. 

-Searching the Verlustlisten for Rechenhimer, Rechenheimer, Reichenheimer, and Frits (with S at the end and leaving the surname blank) gives no hits. There are Reichenheims, including a Heinrich from the 4. Garde-Regiment zu Fuss who was wounded in 1916, but I don't suppose he's very relevant.

-I wondered if the watch could have been taken from e.g. a POW and inscribed by the new owner with (an approximation of) the old owner's name and regt, although such a explanation doesn't account for "God mitt uns" or "July 1914."

[charlie2]

At least Frits is a forename which is not uncommon in the Netherlands and is also to be found in Denmark and Norway! I think it is no more than a very crude attempt to fool the unwary into parting with more money.

Charlie

[WMVI]

Thank you all for the very informative and well thought out responses/theories. I really appreciate the help!

[6th Hauraki KIA KAHA]

I can't say anything about the markings on yours but I have a simular one