Now then ... WHY such a ballyhoo over watches?

For the most part, time dictates.
We are governed more by time than we are by politicians. Time plays such an integral part of our lives that we cannot, with clarity of reason, dismiss it. Rosters, calendars, prophecies and appointments are but a few dictators of our lives that won't allow us the convenience of amnesia ... but these things are as readily available to us on any personal computer, or on the latest cell-phone models on the market, and so we don't really need a timepiece on our wrists, propped up against the wall, or atop a mantelpiece, to remind us of our responsibilities. Watches could therefore be deemed redundant in the true sense of the word.
But, for some reason they have never been discarded with nolens volens. There simply is a purpose or function that it fulfils, not least of which involves the same reason that a woman dons make-up and other jewellery to make herself feel more comfortable.
It has, primarily, an aesthetic value that time itself will never diminish.
But it goes to more than mere beauty.
Timepieces are, to put it quite simply, a work of art.
Beneath the beautifully designed dials and casings lie a constellation of intracacies that make up the gears and movements that work together to fulfil one specific function. And therein lies the art. It is THAT which entices the connoisseur.
It's certainly NOT all about the time.
And it is to this effect that a distinction should be made between the quartz movement and the automatic one, more of which will be dealt with in one of my following posts.
Ironically, however, the cheaper of the two is more accurate, as it derives its power from a battery that delivers pulses, while the more expensive of the two requires more costly maintenance, and may not be as accurate.
But it is therein that lies the art, for an automatic / mechanical watch derives its power from a mainspring that needs to be wound in order the get the gear-train going, and each cog works in conjunction with another to turn the minute, hour and second hands.
But, more about the distinction between the two later.