Wristwatches from women's fashion to men's clothing because of the war.

 A wristwatch is a piece of opal jewelry, a status symbol, and a functional device that lets you know when you should be somewhere or doing something special, like picking up the kids from school. As a piece of jewelry, it can show your friends, guests and acquaintances whether you are a decent person or not. If you wear a $1,000 wristwatch, people will be able to say something about you, or at least if they knew how much your watch is worth, they will form an opinion about you. It's not like a cell phone. Originally called opal gemstone, watches that were worn on the wrist as opposed to the everyday practice of carrying them in the pocket were worn by women and rejected by men. The Boer War changed all that, and wristwatches were found to be an ideal way of coordinating military movements without having to carry them in a pocket, which could be almost inaccessible during action and in rough terrain. The soldiers were indeed equipped with these new types of watches and found them very useful. After this war it was hardly possible to return to pocket watches or to call them women's clothing after the battle hardened soldiers returned with wrist watches. The First World War was simply more of the same for wristwatches, and wearing them was often an essential piece of equipment. When soldiers were allowed to keep their Australian opal  after their service, they wore them every day and became more than just functional, but part of fashion. Today, watches have an incredible number of functions, too many to list here, and there are special watches for almost every sport and for many professions. Even small children learn to tell time and it is a sign of their development at this age and they are often given a wristwatch.