Floral Brass And Blue Watch-face Earrings
Floral brass findings, paired with Soviet-era Russian watch faces and Czech crystal. The watch brand is Zaria/Заря, meaning dawn.
Want to hear about the brand’s history? You’re in luck! In the rapid industrialization prior to World War II, the Soviet government sought international funding and expertise to develop a domestic watchmaking industry. Eventually, the French watch manufacturer LIP was chosen. In 1935, the Third State Watch Factory was formed in Penza, a city 625 km/388 mi southeast of Moscow. This factory was made from the remnants of the Frunze Bicycle Plant. LIP engineers brought new tooling to the project, supervised the installation of all equipment, and trained Russian engineers to such good effect that Penza-trained staff helped establish and train employees at the Uglich and Minsk watch factories. Penza also made tooling and supplies for other watch factories. During WWII, the factory was renamed #807, and was dedicated to making military equipment such as mine fuses, mortars, anti-aircraft artillery control devices, and so on.
Following the war, in 1945, the government renamed #807 back to Penza Watch Factory, and ordered it to produce only civilian timepieces. The factory resumed making the watch-brands Zvezda, and a new wristwatch caliber for men, named Pobeda. In 1949, the factory was ordered to discontinue manufacture of men's watches and focus only on small timepieces and movements for women – including the new brand Zaria.
The factory also produced the brands Aurora, Junost, Kometa, Lux, Lyra, Mechta, Sura, Vesna, and Zvezda. These were all consolidated into Zaria. The Penza Watch Factory is still going today, producing about 500,000 watches annually, for domestic and international markets.
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