Citizen Junior Parashock Phynox Pocket Watch - 17 Jewels - Late 50s/Early 60s - Hand-wound - Gold-plated Pocket Watch

An unusual pocket watch from Citizen's "Junior" family – and thus from an important phase of the post-war Japanese watch industry.

This Citizen Junior combines a classic pocket watch case with a mechanical hand-wound movement with 17 jewels.

The dial bears the characteristic designations for these early Citizen movements:

Citizen Junior
17 Jewels
Para Shock
Phynox

This immediately places the watch in Citizen's mechanical tradition of the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Citizen – A Brand That Started With a Pocket Watch

Especially with a Citizen pocket watch, a look at the brand's history is particularly interesting.

The predecessor of today's company, the Shokosha Watch Research Institute, was founded in 1918 with the declared goal of manufacturing its own watches in Japan.

The first finished product in 1924 was not a wristwatch, but a pocket watch.

This watch was named Citizen at the suggestion of the then Tokyo mayor Shinpei Goto – in the hope that it would be worn by as many citizens as possible. The product name later became the company name.

A Citizen pocket watch thus, in a sense, leads directly back to the origins of the brand.

The Junior Series

Citizen introduced the name Junior in 1958.

The model family was originally aimed at a younger clientele and combined relatively affordable mechanical movements with what was then a high-quality technical specification. Citizen itself dates the introduction of the Junior to 1958.

The Junior movements were offered with several jewel counts; 17 jewels was one of the higher-equipped variants.

The present pocket watch model transfers this technology into a classic pocket watch format.

Parashock and Phynox

The other two designations on the dial are also technically interesting.

Parashock was Citizen's own shock protection system and was designed to protect the delicate balance staff of a mechanical movement against shocks.

Phynox refers to a corrosion-resistant special alloy used for mainsprings and hairsprings.

Both are typical indications of how strongly Japanese manufacturers in the late 1950s tried to make their mechanical watches more technically robust and suitable for everyday use.

Design

The gold-colored round case measures 43.3 mm without crown and bow.

The cream-colored dial is deliberately classic. Fine gold-colored baton indices, slender hands, and minimalist typography create an elegant, almost Swiss-like aesthetic.

The pocket watch form, in particular, gives the otherwise restrained design an unusual character.

Condition

The watch is in authentic vintage condition.

Case and case back show clear scratches and minor blemishes due to age and use. The dial also shows age-appropriate signs of wear.

A recent service is not documented.

The actual condition is shown unretouched in the product photos.

Technical Data

Brand: Citizen
Model: Junior
Type: Pocket Watch
Movement: mechanical hand-wound
Jewels: 17 Jewels
Markings: Parashock / Phynox
Functions: Hour, Minute, Center Seconds
Case: gold-colored
Diameter: 43.3 mm without crown/bow
Height: 10 mm
Weight: 38 g
Dial: Cream / Champagne
Chain: none
Origin: Japan
Era: probably late 1950s / early 1960s

Warranty (used)

This is a used item. The limitation period for claims for defects under the statutory warranty is 12 months from delivery.

Note on Water Resistance

No water resistance is guaranteed for this vintage pocket watch. The watch should not come into contact with water or moisture.