If you’ve ever wondered to yourself just how gorgeous a distilled Datograph could be, this is your answer. Lange broke all standards of watchmaking in 1999 with the aesthetically moving and impressively engineered calibre L951.1 Datograph, entirely manufactured on German soil. In the wake of that momentous release, a subset...

You will be familiar with the Royal Navy’s Rolex Milsub series. You will also likely be familiar with the classic snowflake-handed 9401/0 Marine Nationale which has recently seen new life. However, Tudor’s military history extends far beyond France. South Africa also issued its Navy divers a small run of reference...

Patek’s 3970 has enjoyed one of the sharpest upward trajectories in collectability of anything this side of a Cosmograph in recent years. The rise to appreciation has been a culmination of many factors: scholarship in the form of excellent reference guides such as by A Collected Man and Collectability, greater...

Given the feature of a 3970 in this round, I felt compelled to balance the scales with a down-to-basics, no-nonsense steel diver. I did not expect to stumble upon one so lovely or of the same era. Neo-vintage is not just collectable in Patek, VC, or AP, the era has...

This is not an integrated bracelet watch. It is a watch integrated by its finishing. By that, I mean this example has been carefully manufactured such that the dial, case, bracelet, and, hell, even the clasp are all a consistent hobnial texture. Guilloché is an art form all itself, but...

I have spilled a great deal of ink already on behalf of my pick from the original ‘holy trinity’. However, in light of the recent Les Historiques reissue, an original 222 is now a different proposition. When a manufacture shines a bright light on the dark, dusty corners of their...

We love a Day-Date around here. Whether oxblood, khanjar, or more the more restrained offering shown today, the 1803 is cemented in Wilsdorf’s lore and the iconography of watch history. Yet, collectors will still usually freak out only for the more exotic variants: lapis, missoni, rubellite, Jurassic park dials, etc....

Insanely technical independent De Bethune are perhaps best known for their use (or misuse) of the pun Starry Varius or insane spaceship designs. The manufacture is an involved one, one of the few independents that manufacture everything from the hairspring to the handset vertically. This simple chronograph is a magnificently...

Royalty in all of vintage Seiko, this 1966 Seiko 62MAS was genesis for all their . . .let us say quite popular modern divers. The DNA is clearly visible throughout the current range. It was the first serious attempt to appeal to the new dive market, as all previous releases...

Like very few aspects in life, it is often possible in watch collecting for one to both have their cake and eat it too. There are ultra-thin perpetual calendar chonographs, dive-GMTs, modern fusée chains, and value independents. Indeed, we are in something of a renaissance for the width and depth...

Shortly after the 5402 graced the world with its presence, AP experimented with a few variations on the theme. Out of this early/mid 80s era came many of the iconic complicated Royal Oak offerings we revere today. However, the very first complicated offering to feature in AP’s midsized 36mm case...

If manners maketh man, patina maketh Rolex. Patina can arrive in many forms: wrist wear, consistent sun exposure, and manufacturing defects are the most common. It is the rare bird which displays multiple forms of weathering. Just such an example is what a have here: an early 16550 which sports...

There is something undeniably charming about a watch with a voice. Of all complications, a simple alarm is often most practical. Sure, your iphone times things. But when your watch can do it too, you will find yourself setting a reminder on your wrist for sheer novelty. JLC’s Memovox is...

Obscured, understated, and extremely rare, the 49002 was released toward the start of VC’s Les Historiques range. Much like Cartier’s CPCP or even Zenith’s Revival line, the collection aimed to revisit the best of their immense past with exceptional modern watchmaking technique. So why has no one heard of the...

Watches which have lived a full life and have that story to tell on their exterior hold pride of place for many us. In that pantheon, Rolex’s milsubs are arguably the most highly collected military watches of all time. Records denote ~1250 delivered examples across the three reference varieties. The...

For many, a huge attraction to any sub-genre of watch collecting is the community which forms around it. Rolex and Patek collectors, with their relatively recent mainstream appreciation, cover the spectrum of humanity. Some of the very best of us, some . . .well, not. When a marque becomes synonymous...

Where exquisite design meets considered watchmaking, great things happen. This is perhaps no more evident than Cartier’s 1998 Paris Collection Privee (CPCP) era. The collection aimed to resurrect greats from their past like the Cintrée, Santos, Tortue, and Tank à Vis with masterful mechanical movements. It is often forgotten that...

If you want Genta but you want it niche, it does not come much more nuanced than this 1829. IWC’s Golf Club has brief and somewhat shrouded history, one which is still being excavated today by enthusiasts even sadder than myself. Yes, they exist. This faceted cushion case sister of...