Iraq: ‘Watchmaking’ A Craft that Resists to Fade Away in Sulaymaniyah

Since time immemorial, watchmaking craft was held in high esteem and it was only confined to those with special skills as it requires high measurement accuracy. However, with the industrial revolution sweeping the world, electronic watches have become widely popular, substituting the old handmade watches. Hence, the watchmaking craft became only mastered by a few. Wasta Qadr Al Saaje, a watchmaker with 50 years of experience in Sulaymaniyah illustrated that such craft is fading away in light of the technological advancement. Despite the fact that his customers are few, he still holds to such a profession. As watches’ prices are affordable, people tend to buy new ones instead of repairing their old ones