20368/1 Universal Genève Polerouter

Damn nearly everyone who’s into vintage watches at a certain level develops a soft spot for the Polerouter. It is the least discussed work of Genta, aesthetically all kinds of restrained, art deco perfect. It was technically competent, the world’s first micro-rotor wristwatch (Büren, I don’t want to hear it). But more than either objective appeal, the Polerouter has become an institution of value, for years the default place you’d land on if you were serious about vintage, knew the weight of history here, and wanted a slightly more dressy value. Which means that not many have survived in a state like this.

The Polerouter was released in 1954 in honor of the first flight over the North Pole, hence the title. The design responsibility was given to a young Gerald Genta, who proved to be pretty adept with a pen. Perhaps more impressive than that feat, though, was its calibre. A little ways into production in 1955, Universal Genève invented the micro rotor in calibre 215, which was just 4.2mm thin. The was before Patek Philippe copied the homework, and well before the micro-rotor became mainstay of ultra-thin haute horlogerie. But it allowed this lyre-lug case to be extremely svelte and elegant, which suited the dial. And there are many dial variants. This is a later production 20368/1, with an applied U. There’s a lot to learn about these but thankfully more active community members than I, such as universalgenevepolerouter.com, have recently started collecting what’s known. It’s an impossible watch not to love.

I shy to the side of never terming watches new old stock for obvious reasons, but this is pretty close and a complete set with box, papers, and stickers. That’s pretty unheard of as this wasn’t exactly a collector’s watch when it debuted. And it’s doubly interesting to me, because I have no idea what that limited edition caseback stick is about either: none whatsoever. That’s quite an intriguing mystery to me. No matter what the answer, this is a lovely Polerouter, in a condition you don’t find as often as you would’ve 10 years ago. These are collected now. And then deserve to be. A monumentally significant Universal Genève, no matter what the next Polerouter looks like.

I normally comment on condition here, but I’ll leave it alone here. It’s perfect. It comes from a well-regarded private collector who’s recently branched out with his own small retail platform.