Souscription Resonance is now mentioned in the same way collectors talk about 1526 and 2523. In the latter, tiny differences really matter. Souscriptions are largely a similar production. But this one isn’t, it’s two-tone. And two-tone in pink with platinum is the best sort of two-tone. All of these are...

Finds. With all that’s come since, it’s easy to overlook that this is unquestionably the original über-Lange. A moonshot project imagined but a few days after the Berlin wall fell, this was the watch was to prove to the Swiss that this ragtag German upstart should be taken seriously. Blümlein...

This, Audemars Piguet’s 1986 ref. 25636, is the first AP skeletonized perpetual calendar of any sort. It was released in 1986, a full two years ahead of the 36mm ref. 25668 skeleton in a circular case. It’s not the first-ever skeleton QP, VC’s 43032 was released in 1984. But it...

There are probably far fewer than 10 of these: an Audemars Piguet ref. 25661 in platinum with a mother of pearl dial. Within the long march of the QP which brought back complicated watchmaking to Switzerland (famously developed in secret), the 25661 was first to feature a display caseback—which here...

In 1983, Vacheron Constantin announced to the world their intentions to return to traditional, complicated mechanical watchmaking in the wake of the quartz crisis with the ref. 43031 Perpetual Calendar. Switzerland had been decimated, with watch industry employment falling from 90,000 to 28,000 and the number of dedicated watchmakers employed...

Audemars Piguet remained independently owned through the tumultuous 1990s and 2000s (still are), led by Georges-Henri Meylan and later Philippe Merk, where many of their peers were gobbled up in acquisitions. The former spearheaded the highly contemporary Royal Oak QP Skeleton. First came the ref. 25636, followed by this 25829....

Vacheron Constantin’s Mercator is a time-only quite unlike any other. Released in 1994, it sought to honor the 400th anniversary of Gerardus Mercator who created map projection—the basis of all modern cartography. He was also, notably, a calligrapher and engraver: both of which inspired the overall basis for this ref....

In the world of 90s Holy Trinity chronographs, I don’t think you can make an argument against VC having the sexiest case. The 5070 is lovely, but not this voluptuous. It’s thoughtful enough to not be retro, yet a bastion of traditional watchmaking technique. It might just be the most...

The 6241 is a fundamentally interesting Daytona reference, in production for just three years from 1966 until 1969. Introduced concurrently to the 6240 with its relatively ground-breaking screw down pushers and acrylic bezel, this was effectively a 6239 updated to include an acrylic bezel for customers who preferred the classic...

In the world of Zenith Daytona, nearly all collectors concur that the most desirable out there have one thing: a floating Cosmograph line. The first of anything in vintage Rolex tends to be a bit different, not just because it was the first but because Rolex were still figuring things...

There is little in all of vintage chronographs which has as much history and value in one overlooked place as the BA 145.022-69. Better known as the first gold Speedmaster, it intersects with actual space history much more significantly than just about anything else post moon landing. The pale gold...

Still today, there is nothing quite like the original 222. This is the original, vintage ref. 44018 222 ‘Jumbo’ in steel. Vacheron Constantin’s answer to the Royal Oak and Nautilus arrived in 1977 with the 222, created to celebrate the brand’s 222nd anniversary. The third and final member of the...

The 1675 is all things to all (traveling) men. There are a bewildering number of variants and this is one you won’t see often. Limited to a serial range of approximately 4.1-5.4M, this is the radial dial. During this tiny bit of production, the (marginally smaller) tritium plots moved closer...

The 3970's earliest two series are beginning to be considered true vintage, which is having profound effects. But this isn’t a 3970. It’s a 3971, a reference created before the standardization of selling both a solid and sapphire caseback with each 3970. The 3971 was a screwdown, sapphire-backed, equivalent of...

The 90s was a time of complicated watchmaking returning to power, no longer for purpose but as expressions of watchmaking skill and emotion. The Breguet 3947 is an oft-overlooked split seconds from this period (most dating 1998-2002), with a total production likely far lower than 100 examples (over both refs)....

Audemars Piguet remained independently owned through the tumultuous 1990s and 2000s (still are), led by Georges-Henri Meylan and later Philippe Merk, where many of their peers were gobbled up by corporate jockeying. The former spearheaded this highly contemporary Royal Oak QP Skeleton, a continuation of the first 25636. This daring...

A white gold Queen Midas with a coral dial is a rare and fantastic enough sight in its own right. But this example has an Oman khanjar at 6. In all my time in watches, I’ve only ever seen two of these. One popped up randomly in yellow gold at...

Lemon normally describes a defect, yet in Paul Newmans it’s anything but, it’s seven figures to start. The 6262 and 6264 will be known to collectors as the transition reference Daytonas; either is relatively uncommon in its own right, desired by collectors. This is particularly the case for the Paul...