Watch stand ca. 1750-60 Possibly Tournai When not being worn on an individual, a pocket watch could be placed on a stand, transforming it from a personal item into a household one, like a mantel clock. Watch stands were produced at porcelain and pottery factories throughout Europe and were also made in other materials, such as gilded bronze and wood. First appearing in the seventeenth century, they gained popularity in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries when watch ownership became more common.. Watch stand 201735