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As last year’s British Watchmakers’ Day illustrated, British horology is in its modern-day ascendency. What was, just a decade ago, nothing more than a nice idea has blossomed into one of the most creative lynchpins of watch design in the world. There are countless reasons why that’s become the case, but for me, there are three key ones: fun, accessibility and diversity.

Fun is self-explanatory; British watches don’t take themselves nearly as seriously as their Swiss counterparts. Cool colours, funky designs, a tongue-in-cheek outlook, British watch brands are like your favourite weekend drinking buddy in their straightforward fun. At the same time, he’s a cheap drinker. The return on investment is solid.

But while British brands do tend to share a few roundabout traits, perhaps the definitive reason they’re on the up is diversity. In what other place could you find Mr Jones’ Perfectly Useless Afternoon, something as intensely design-focused as Schofield, and the horological luminaries of Garrick, and beyond, right up to Roger Smith? There’s something for everyone.

So yes, most British brands are incredibly distinct, but through their innately idiosyncratic approach to design, there’s always some common ground, even if that’s between two watch labels that on the surface are polar opposites. Because if there’s one thing we Brits can all bond over, it’s a drink. At least, that’s the case for Messrs Rich Benc and Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, the men behind Studio Underd0g and Fears.

On the one hand you have a brand built on humour, on not taking anything too seriously. Studio Underd0g has turned tongue-in-cheek into an empire of sell-out releases and unexpected collaborations. On the other hand, Fears is a heritage brand reborn that favours old school, 1930s elegance over playfulness and has become one of the most important modern brands in the revival of British watchmaking. On paper, you may assume that never the two shall meet. If that’s the case however, I’d like to introduce you to the Fears x Studio Underd0g Gimlet.

A gimlet, for those less inclined towards alcoholic epicureanism, is a cocktail. Specifically, a very, very strong gin cocktail that’s as strong as a martini and goes down far smoother. It has a slight green tint, nothing like lime, but more a pale greenish-yellow-to-white. It’s also liable to take you home and not call you back if you let it – which is apparently what happened to Rich.

I’ve known Nicholas for worryingly close to a decade now, so believe me when I say, the man likes a drink and can handle it better than nearly anyone I know. So, when he and Rich headed on a night out back in 2022, the writing was already on the wall.

This wasn’t the pair’s first meeting of course. As Rich puts it, “when I launched my brand in 2021, 255 people rallied together allowing me to bring my ideas to reality. One of those early backers was Nicholas. Nicholas has supported Studio Underd0g from the outset and has continued to help me navigate the watch landscape over the years.”

It’s not hard to see why Nicholas had such faith in the nascent watch designer. As the man himself puts it, “the fact he was doing something completely different and original was such a breath of fresh air in the industry and we quickly became good personal friends. I’d originally suggested we might work together on something in the early days of Underd0g and it was a while until the time was right to start work on what was then Project 23.” So, when Rich was showing Nicholas early ideas for the Field Series 02, the form Project 23 would take became obvious. A big eye chrono Brunswick was a no-go, but the dual layered dial? That could work. But what colour to go for? Fears is a brand that valued pared-back elegance, so something like the vape-esque Pink Lem0nade wouldn’t work. Nothing too out-there would.

Which brings us back to the seemingly apocryphal Gimlet Night. After smashing a number of the cocktails at various London establishments, trying to come up with the right solution, the answer hit Rich at the same time as the next day’s hangover: what would be better than that perfect pale green/white of the notorious drink?

Here, that’s been rendered in the two-layered, fully lumed dial from Studio Underd0g Field Series 02, going from pale green to white, the green of the lime in the drink to the froth of foam at the top. You can smell the gin-laced citrus. It’s far subtler than the Pink Lem0nade but still has those two screws that are, along with the upper layer of sapphire, the collection’s signature. It’s not a rehash of the Field Series 02 either; it uses the exact same Sellita SW210-1 calibre automatic movement. The difference is that it’s otherwise pure Fears.

The Brunswick is a modern British icon, the herald of 1930s archival throwbacks before that became a zeitgeisty trope. It was the watch that made Fears – albeit on the shoulders of the original quartz Redcliff – and led to a resurgence in elegant, cushion cased watches sans sandwich dials and diving indexes. The Gimlet not only uses the Brunswick’s 38mm case, but it’s elegant numerals and skeletonised, pipette handset, shadowed on the lower green-tinted dial.

If you were going to ask me beforehand what form I’d expect a Studio Underd0g-Fears collaboration to take, this would be it. I’ve been wanting to see more from the Field series anyway as the dial execution is painfully cool and a bit more serious than the playful colours of the big eye chronos. That slightly more strait-laced approach is the middle-ground that allows the Field Series 02 to work on the Brunswick, a watch that’s proven its versatility over the years with a host of gorgeous dial executions. It just fits.

“When you first look at the watch,” says Nicholas, “you feel like it seems familiar but slightly different. Like a person with a new haircut, its them but also not quite them. It’s then that it clicks and you see that at once it feels like a Fears and a Studio Underd0g at the same time, almost snapping between the two constantly. The Gimlet combines the most distinctive parts of both brands design language in a very harmonious way.”

For Rich, it also symbolises “an unexpected friendship.” But it also, at least to him, embodies a warning: “However many gimlets Nicholas is having is too many! I’ve learnt that lesson the hard way…”

If you want to wear that warning yourself, you’ll need to be in the right place at the right time. The Studio Underd0g x Fears Gimlet will be available exclusively at British Watchmakers’ Day, Saturday 8th March, with 100 for sale in the morning, 100 in the afternoon. Given that the show’s debut saw queues around the block for a slice of Studio Underd0g and Time + Tide’s pizza party, you’ll want to get in line nice and early. And of course, congratulate yourself with a gin cocktail.

More details at Studio Underd0g.

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There are a lot of watches that could be considered H. Moser & Cie.’s signature model. The Streamliner could easily claim that title with its unique style of integrated bracelet. Or one of their quirkier pieces like the Swiss Alp or Vanta Black. But that raises the question, what does it mean to be a signature watch. To me it means to be the first watch people think of and when it comes to H. Moser the first thing people think is awesome fumé dial and nowhere is that more evident than on the Pioneer Tourbillon, now available in a Burgundy edition.

The Pioneer is ostensibly H. Moser’s sports watch collection by their own definition and description, though I’m not sure who exactly is looking at these incredibly refined, elegant watches and thinking, yes, that’s the watch I’ll go hiking in. But to give them their due, they have made sure that should you wish to go on said adventure, the watch should be absolutely fine with 120m water resistance to protect it from any rain or unceremonious spills into a river. Even with its 40mm red gold case. Though it’s not the most extreme aquatically inclined gold case of recent years due to Rolex’s mad 3,900m full gold Deepsea.

However, the key feature of this updated model is the fresh colour on the dial. It’s a rich burgundy fumé, hence the model being the H. Moser & Cie. Pioneer Tourbillon Burgundy. Fumé is a style of gradient that starts light in the centre of the dial and transitions to a darker colour around the periphery of the display, giving the piece a smoky aesthetic. Which is apt because fumé in French translates to smoke. H. Moser have truly mastered the technique as the Pioneer Tourbillon is now available with teal, green and burgundy fumé examples.

Occupying a large portion of the dial at 6 o’clock is the tourbillon. Originally designed by Abraham Louis Breguet in the 1800s, it’s designed to keep the watch’s balance spring in constant motion, offsetting the affects of gravity on the accuracy of the watch. Although as many collectors will tell you, just by wearing your watch on your wrist you achieve more or less the same effect as tourbillons were originally designed for pocket watches that stay in the same position all day. As such, in modern watches, tourbillons are technically more decorative elements than practical ones, which is fine because they do look amazing in motion.

The tourbillon here is part of the HMC 805 automatic calibre. A seriously impressive movement with a 72-hour power reserve despite the power intensive tourbillon. It’s finished as immaculately as the dial with a skeletonised rotor, striped finishing and golden inlay on the brand’s logo.

Between the golden elements and the rich burgundy colour, there’s something very royal about this watch. It almost feels Germanic like a relic of the Prussian empire or something – although maybe that’s because my mind is erroneously conflating burgundy with Prussian violet. As for the price, it might as well be a treasure at CHF 59,900 (approx. £ 53,200).

More details at H. Moser & Cie.

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Today (January 29^th) marks the start of Chinese New Year, it’s also the release day for the new Christopher Ward x seconde/seconde/ The Twelve Snake, launched to celebrate the occasion. The fact we couldn’t tell you about it until today is why it isn’t included in our round-up of the best Year of the Snake watches from a few weeks ago, though it would definitely deserve a spot on there. It’s a fun, nostalgic take on serpentine watch design inspired by everyone’s favourite retro game, Snake.

I think everyone has played Snake at some point in their lives. I remember playing it on my old brick Nokia in my tent the first time I went to a festival – when smartphone charge lasted about four hours and the idea of mobile charging packs were an alien concept, while a Nokia could happily stay on for a week. There’s something remarkable in the simplicity of the gameplay that makes it addictive. Snake moves one of four directions. Snake eats food. Snake gets big. Serotonin goes up. Just don’t eat yourself because that’s obviously a bad plan for survival.

The Christopher Ward x seconde/seconde/ The Twelve Snake cleverly uses the pixel-like pattern of The Twelve’s distinctive textured dial to create the image of pixel art snake weaving its way across a vivid, backlit LCD-style green display. The food it’s pursuing is also the plus symbol that forms part of the Christopher Ward logo, which is another charming touch. seconde/seconde/, the alias of artist and designer Romaric André, is no stranger to adding pixel art to watches. He’s the designer behind the iconic Minecraft sword hands on a Rolex that shot him to popularity a few years ago.

Beyond the naturally pixelated display of The Twelve, this model is perfect for a Chinese New Year watch for other reasons. The Chinese Zodiac features twelve animals in its cycle, so there’s a numerical cohesion in their concepts, right down to the dodecagon bezel. It makes me hope this isn’t a one-off and CW might tackle the entire cycle going forward. Many other brands like Chopard have tackled the entire cycle previously and I was actually quite saddened to learn this year that having completed all 12, Chopard aren’t producing anymore; they were some of the coolest zodiac watches each year. Perhaps Christopher Ward can fill that void.

Speaking of filling voids, you’ll notice there’s a date window between 7 and 8 o’clock. That’s what Christopher Ward describe as the bonus bites section, based on a feature of the game, showing little game related easter eggs as the days go by. There are also some easter eggs on the back of the watch such as the snake appearing again on the rotor as well as an inscription celebrating the ‘Snake Year(s)’.

It’s powered by the Sellita SW200-1, Christopher Ward’s go-to Swiss movement with 38-hour power reserve and +/-20 second per day accuracy. I probably sound like a broken record, but I do wish brands would update their stock to the improved power reserve models because it’s such a nice quality of life improvement. Still, it’s essentially a waiting game until the old stock gets used up, I’m sure it will happen at some point.

As for pricing and availability, the Christopher Ward x seconde/seconde/ The Twelve Snake is £1,050 on steel bracelet or £850 on rubber strap, available in black or venom green to match the dial. It’s available to pre-order during a limited period from January 29^th – February 10^th.

More details at Christopher Ward.

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British Watchmakers’ Day from the Alliance of British Watch and Clock Makers is coming up fast, March 8^th. So brands who are attending have started to reveal the exclusive BWD limited edition watches that will be exclusively available at the event. Each is a cool special edition with a link to UK design and artistry, like the Beaucroft x Penfold. Fellow British brand Isotope have shared a sneak peak at their plans, the Mercury BWD Cloisonné and Micro Marquetry.

At time of writing the watches are still being produced, so there are no finalised photos of the complete watches. However, Isotope’s co-founder Jose Miranda is so excited by the project he has shared some work in progress images of the dials and concept art. And he’s right to be excited because for British Watchmakers’ Day 2025 Isotope is taking on the Metiers d’Art. Metiers d’Art is the term applied to rare and beautiful decorate arts used on the dial of a watch. Enamelling, marquetry, sculpture, guilloché, engraving, miniature painting are all disciplines that fall under this term.

The first of the two special editions is the Isotope Mercury BWD Cloisonné. Cloisonné is a type of enamel that uses fine gold wire to create shapes in the dial, allowing different colours to sit side by side without blending into each other. It works really well on the stylised Union Jack design, which was created by British artist Sophie Scott-Lewis. Enamel dials are incredibly difficult to produce and so each of the five dials (both special editions are limited to five pieces) were crafted by a master enameller from Beijing.

Second up is the Mercury BWD Micro Marquetry. Marquetry is a technique that uses dyed wood or straw to create geometric patterns and here Isotope have opted for a delicate straw marquetry to realise Sophie’s other Union Jack design. It’s crafted in Paris in the atelier of Bernardo d’Orey, who also created the marquetry boxes both special editions are supplied in.

Both editions feature the Isotope Mercury case in mirror polished steel, measuring 38mm x 10mm. Inside is the Calibre I-7 assembled by Landeron, based on the ETA Peseux 7001, with 42-hour power reserve. The dials look great and the concept of British designed Metiers d’Art is an attractive one.  I can’t wait to see the final assembled models at the Watchmakers’ Day. If you are planning to attend and pick one up, the Isotope Mercury BWD Cloisonné is £4,900 and the Micro Marquetry is £4,700. Also come and say hi because Oracle Time will be exhibiting at the event too.

More details at Isotope.

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Panerai’s experience editions are going from strength to strength – watches where part of the value comes from access to once-in-a-lifetime experiences. From a navy-style bootcamp to a city break and most recently, with the Mike Horn Experience Edition, a full on expedition to Bhutan. The experience that comes with the Panerai Radiomir 8 Giorni Eilean Experience Edition PAM01643 takes things in a relaxing direction with a complete Sicilian holiday.

Don’t forget that Panerai are offering an Oracle Time reader an experience as well, with a chance to attend Watches & Wonders – the competition closes on January 31^st so there’s not long left. Back to the Radiomir, the Sicilian adventure begins with a helicopter ride followed by a hike up the slopes of Mt. Etna, where you’ll have privilege access to a local winery. The Mediterranean Experience will conclude with a cruise aboard the Eilean, Panerai’s sailboat that has formed the basis for several watches in the collection.

The new watch has closer ties to Eilean than any of the watches that have come before because it contains components made from the actual boat. The bronze crown, bezel and caseback medallion are made from bronze taken from the bronze fittings that were removed from the boat when it was restored a few years ago. It’s not 100% Eilean-ian bronze as the material was re-smelted along with some new bronze to make it suitable for use on a watch and return the golden, copper colour. Plus, there had to be enough material to stretch across the 30-piece limited edition.

Completing the bi-metal appearance of the piece is the rest of the steel cushion case. It has Panerai’s proprietary Brunito finishing, which consists of dark PVD coating that’s then worn away by hand to create a worn, vintage appearance that’s unique to each watch. It’s still a Panerai so it’s a big watch too, measuring 45mm in diameter. If you look along its flank, you’ll also see the Eilean name along with a replica of the dragon emblem found on the Eilean.

For the dial, the Radiomir 8 Giorni Eilean Experience Edition PAM01643 builds on the bronze elements of the case with a beige colour. It’s also the off-white, cream tone of natural sailcloth, specifically the colour of the sails found on the Eilean. It’s one of the most attractive dials on any recent Panerai with its gentle fumé gradient adding a soft smokiness. The beige lume elements of the sandwich dial also adds a sense of vintage aging to the dial, similar to the Brunito finishing for the case. It’s a traditional Radiomir display with hours, minutes and small seconds.

Inside, it houses the P.5000 manual winding movement with 8-day power reserve, which is where the 8 Giorni comes in the watch’s name. It achieves such a long power reserve with a double barrel system while most watch only have a single power barrel – the coiled spring that stores energy when you wind the watch. The calibre is protected by a solid caseback with commemorative medallion marking the year of the boat’s maiden voyage.

As mentioned briefly, the Panerai Radiomir 8 Giorni Eilean Experience Edition PAM01643 is a limited edition of 30-pieces. It’s also price on request, to no one’s surprise considering that it comes with a luxury Mediterranean holiday. If you want a slice of the dolce vita on your wrist and in your photo albums and memories, Panerai have got you covered.

More details at Panerai.

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While I’m one of the few people in Oracle Time HQ who doesn’t know his Arsenal from his West Ham, there are some sports I find myself enraptured by. Bizarrely it’s tennis and rugby that find themselves at the top of that list despite being at the opposite ends of the finesse spectrum. If you want a tennis themed watch, you should look at Richard Mille’s Rafael Nadal series. But for rugby, it has to be Breitling and their annual Six Nations collection. For 2025 they’ve launched the Chronomat Automatic GMT 40 Six Nations and I have the Ireland edition here for review.

As an English publication, you might ask the question why aren’t we reviewing the English edition? Well, the core feature of these six watches is a brand new dial finish and under the bright lights of our photography studio it’s the Irish green that’s easier to see the details on rather than white. Breitling are calling it a ‘pitch finish’ and it consists of alternating bands of matte colour and metallic, horizontal brushing. It’s really successful at creating an impression of a rugby pitch with its striped lines in the grass.

Plus moving the watch under the light creates a really satisfying shimmer as the light plays across the contrasting details of the brushed and matte surfaces. While you’re moving the watch around to catch the light you can’t help but admire the case too. It’s just the standard Chronomat design but it suits the sporty vibes of the theme perfectly with its bold unidirectional bezel. At 40mm in steel it’s well sized on the wrist as well and the Rouleaux style bracelet is one of the most comfortable around (as a hirsute man, hairs getting trapped is a constant pain but here that’s never been an issue).

Breitling have been producing Six Nations watches for a few years now and each time they focus on a different complication. For the Breitling Chronomat Automatic GMT 40 Six Nations that means a dual time zone GMT complication. A central 24-hour hand points towards a peripheral 24-hour scale on the flange, allowing you to tell the time in two time zones simultaneously. You can advance the time on the GMT hand in two ways. When you change local time, the GMT hand will move proportionally with it or you can use the jump function to move it in intervals of one hour, making it easy to change the monitored time zone with ease. All of which is controlled by the very ergonomic, fluted, screw-down crown.

The fact it has a screw-down crown also helps to contribute to a 200m water resistance rating, building on the sporty versatility of the piece. As does the ultra-legible display with lumed baton hour markers and matching lumed hands. The colour of the GMT hand varies depending on the model so the Ireland one is white but England’s is red for example.

Turning the Chronomat Automatic GMT 40 Six Nations over reveals a solid caseback with the focal nation’s rugby union crest. It also denotes that the watch is ‘one of 250’ as each variant is a limited edition of 250. Beneath that caseback is housed the Breitling Calibre 32 with 42-hour power reserve and COSC chronometer certification. It’s based on the ETA 2893-2 automatic GMT. The fact it’s a chronometer helps ensure its accuracy and reliability as it’s been lab tested in multiple positions.

Each of the watches in the collection is priced at £4,950, which is the same as Breitling’s other Chronomat GMT 40 watches. I find it hard to judge the value of Breitling releases, it is a COSC chromometer but there are plenty of watches out there with similar quality for much less. But at the end of the day, Breitling itself carries a lot of cachet of its own and its own style that few in the industry come close to replicating.

More details at Breitling.

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I must admit that the marketing around the Timex Giorgio Galli S2 from 2023 does the watch no favours. Dedicated as it is to the Timex Group’s Creative Director, it feels a little too self-congratulatory. However, that does nothing to stop the watch itself from being lovely. So lovely in fact that Timex have released a new edition, the Timex Giorgio Galli S2Ti. It’s also the swan song for the S series which is being discontinued after this launch.

As you may be able to gather from the chemical symbol Ti in the watch’s name, this version of the watch upgrades the 38mm case from steel to titanium. Titanium has a higher strength-to-weight ratio than steel, meaning it’s much lighter on the wrist without sacrificing durability. There was a time, four or five years ago when titanium really started to populate the industry, that people would complain that watches should have heft to them and while you still hear that sentiment in relation to tool watches, the Timex Giorgio Galli S2Ti is a daily wearer that’s on the more elegant side of design. So, any quality of life and wearability improvements are welcome.

One thing to note is that the original steel S2 did feature some titanium as well; it had a titanium middle case. Now that the rest of the watch is presented in titanium Timex still wanted to give it a middle case of a material one rung higher up the prestige ladder so to speak, and so the Timex Giorgio Galli S2Ti has a forged carbon middle. That’s what gives the flanks their black colouration.

The S2Ti features more changes than just the materials of the case. The dial has changed too, swapping from black to silver. In fact, the dial is made from the same titanium as the case with a satin brushed finish, which is why it pairs so nicely for that cool, monochrome look. Completing the display is a steel ring hour track and polished hands, the slight variation in metallic tones helping the piece remain legible despite all being the same colour.

Beneath the titanium dial is the Sellita SW200-1 automatic movement, a staple of the industry for both established brands like Timex and independent microbrands. It has a 41-hour power reserve, which is solid for an accessible calibre. Although it’s worth noting that the combination of the titanium case, titanium dial and forged carbon middle does make the Timex Giorgio Galli S2Ti the most expensive watch in their entire range at £1,450. It’s also a limited edition of 500 pieces which also contributes to its exclusivity. I think there’s enough value here to justify the price, which just makes it all the sadder that this is the final S series model – because it’s a stunner.

More details at Timex.

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American sportswear and athleisure brand ASRV recently teased an upcoming G-Shock DW-6900 collaboration with two videos posted on Instagram (embedded below). The first video depicts a DW-6900 with a distinctive red backlight embedded in an asteroid. The second video shows a man training outdoors with the watch and displays the “1.30.25” date. The watch has […]

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2023 already feels like a lifetime ago but it really had some stellar watch releases compared to what felt like a somewhat lacklustre 2024. Case in point, 2023 saw the release of the OW 8001 by Ollech & Wajs that to my mind at least caused a new level of growth and interest in the brand. Two years later we have a follow up to that launch, dubbed the Ollech & Wajs OW 8001 ‘Tundra’.

In some ways this is not a brand new watch as the inception of the ‘Tundra’ actually came fairly soon after the launch of the OW 8001. Ollech & Wajs produce quite a large number of closed collaborations, which is to say collaboration watches that are not sold publicly and that are not widely publicised. In fact, they’re not allowed to talk about many of their military collabs until they’re declassified, such as the Department.000 watches. The OW 8001 ‘Tundra’ was not a military watch, instead starting its life as a limited edition in partnership with MIR, the Norwegian Architectural Design Collective.

The new watch is not a 1-to-1 re-release of that collaborative watch, instead being tweaked for public release. It has a moss green fumé dial that shifts through smoky tones, starting light in the centre and fading to almost black around the circumference. It’s inspired by the mossy terrain and low scrubland brush found on the Norwegian tundra – hence the name. It retains the strong, blocky shapes of the original OW 8001’s handset and baton hour markers.

Here though, those shapes have been expanded out to the bezel as a replacement to the previous 60-minute scale with Arabic numerals. It gives a much more structural look to the piece, which is unsurprising given it was born out of an architecture collaboration. It also makes a lot more sense as an artistic, design-led feature considering that the bezel is fixed – it was one of the perplexing features of the original that it ostensibly had a timer bezel that you couldn’t use as a timer.

Beyond the updated bezel, it has the same 39.5mm x 12.7mm case with integrated bracelet. The broad, flat surfaces of the design also play into the blocky style of the piece, which results in quite a brutalist aesthetic. You can again see why this model above all others in the OW range appealed to architects. While it doesn’t have a particularly strong dive watch vibe, the case can go toe-to-toe with them thanks to a 300m water resistance rating.

The relatively high specs continue on the inside as it houses the bespoke OW Soprod Newton Precision P092 COSC chronometer movement. It’s an automatic movement with a 44-hour power reserve and of course the accuracy and reliability are within chronometer requirements ensuring a high level of operation. It’s visible through the exhibition caseback where you can admire the no-nonsense rotor with Zurich 1956 engraving.

The OW 8001 ‘Tundra’ is priced at £1,730, which is the same as the previous edition. I really like the new architectural and Nordic influences applied to the solid framework of the 8001. Its sporty-dive watch capabilities make it the ideal canvas for a touch more design expression without compromising the integrity of the piece.

More details at Ollech & Wajs.

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We like to think that changes in watches happen because of some horological breakthrough or because the industry as a whole decides to change – for example, look at how, ten years ago, everyone decided that all watches had to be 40mm diameter or bigger. Or how a few years ago, everyone was suddenly introducing thin watches. But often, change comes from the most unexpected source; for example, the most exotic Rolex watches happened because of French post-WW2 economic turmoil. A collection of mysterious French-made Rolex cases worth investigating.

Let me explain, in the 12 years after 1946, there were 21 changes of government. In essence, the country was the most unstable in Europe and there were frequent devaluations of the Franc. This posed a problem because France was a firm believer in the Gold Standard, that a country’s currency should be backed by its gold reserves. After WW1, this became the rule and the US Dollar, the Pound Sterling and the French Franc were readily convertible into gold. However, during the 1930s and the Great Depression both Britain and the US abandoned the Gold Standard, but the French held on for as long as possible.

When French citizens saw their currency being constantly devalued, which happened almost annually, they turned their savings into gold and put it under the mattress. This left the government without sufficient gold to meet its reserves, so they instituted a ban on the private purchasing of gold. Gold could only be bought from the Bank of France by licensed jewellers or other industrial users of the metal. Imports of finished gold products were also banned, as this was an obvious way around the prohibition.

Swiss watch brands faced a dilemma; they had French clients who craved gold watches, but they were only allowed to purchase French-made watches, as these had French gold cases. The answer was to have watch movements imported into the country and then house them in gold cases made in France.

However, there were very few industrial case makers in France, so Rolex et. al turned to France’s pool of jewellery talent. Boucheron, Cartier, Chaumet, Clerc, Van Cleef & Arpels were all based in Paris and had nearly a millennium of experience between them, making everything from simple wedding bands to imperial regalia and everything imaginable in between. So hand-made watch cases were no great problem – indeed, many are to this day renowned watch designers in their own right. And so emerged Rolex’s French-made cases.

Every Swiss firm from Omega and IWC to Rolex and Patek followed this route; however, there is a huge difference between a factory-made case produced in the hundreds, if not thousands and a hand-made one built in a jeweller’s atelier. A factory-made case needs to be easy to manufacture, to be able to be reproduced in volume and to use the minimum amount of gold, as the manufacturing costs are minimal once the tooling has been made, but the cost of the gold used is a significant part of the cost.

Whereas the major cost in a jeweller-made case is the wages of the skilled craftsman who constructs the case from scratch, this is why factory-made cases seem almost flimsy when compared to these jeweller-made ones. The other factor worth taking into account is the design, these French jewellers were artists in precious metal, they weren’t particularly interested in making simple rectangles or circular cases with just a little bit of design in the lugs; no, they treated each watch case as a blank canvas and tried to outdo each other in design before handing the design over to the artiste who would physically create the case.

When it comes to Rolex’s French-made cases what that means is rather than sticking to recognisable designs like the Oyster Perpetual, the jewellers ran free with Avant Garde abandon. Rectangular timepieces with what can be described as early examples of integrated lugs with wide, flat, angular surfaces. Or a similar example but with curvy gadroon decoration instead of angular. A square cased piece of vintage Art Deco design with ziggurat levels of layering to the golden case. Each more or less unique with their own character as per the whims of each jeweller. Although that’s not to say there weren’t also the occasional conventional design.

The absolute scarcity of these pieces and the lack of a manufacturer’s stamp inside the caseback means that there is almost no market for them, which – in my opinion – is nothing short of a tragedy.

Image credit: James Dowling

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