The 3940 and indeed 3970 started at their very best. This smaller subdial with its 90 degreee signifies a far smaller, more hand-made production at the very start of serial production complication. To those paying close attention, this era (Philippe Stern’s) is really having a moment. 3940, 3970, and 5004:...

The 1675 is the defining travel watch of its generation. It’s the defining travel watch for many generations after. And gilt dials define many of the ultimate examples. Although the gilt 1675 evolved through numerous dials and even crown guards, the later generations have a subtle charm that makes one...

Imagine walking into the office of Günter Blümlein in 1997 and proposing a massive alteration to the Lange 1 that would fundamentally alter the harmony of its dial: adding a tourbillon. Nonetheless, someone actually had the brass to suggest improving upon the Lange 1. The wildest part is that it...

A bracelet should never be an afterthought, but Wellendorff Lange is the opposite. While a First Generation Datograph is spectacular and deeply significant in its own right, it’s hard for any Wellendorff bracelet to not steal the show. This Datograph was sold by Wempe in 2001, two years after release....

Developed just after the initial World Timers by Louis Cottier, the ref. 2597 is a damn cool ‘Travel Time’ from 1956, the very start of the jet age. The reference can be thought of as a 570 Calatrava with a little je ne sais quoi complication, or a gentleman’s GMT-Master. The...

This is a 18038, but unlike most 18038 it’s a lapis dial. Absent any indices, with apertures framed in yellow gold, this is one of the ultimate yellow gold Day-Date specs. Lapis was and remains one of the most notoriously difficult materials to machine. There is a widely stated figure...