There is something about the pinky ring. This small piece of jewellery casts a powerful message: a statement. It makes a man look and behave differently – more aware of his hand and its gestures. The pinky ring has accompanied so many historical and social settings, from royal to stray, from gangster to gay and from BC to TV. Heres a tale about the hands golden tooth. In a vintage Saturday Night Live scene, actor Joe Pesci (Raging Bull, Good Fellas, Casino, A Bronx Tale, Home Alone) is looking for a new pinky ring at Armontes Pinky Ringery. He tries on a few while under? supervision of pinky ring gods Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin from the wall behind. Without a word, Pesci performs se...
As it happens with so many things in life, the best items often come along when one isnt looking for them. While I do seek out certain items, watches and otherwise, my bank account seems to take its largest hit when Im in an ambivalent state. Whether its the grocery store or a weekend visit to London or NYC before Christmas, Im at my worst when I go with little to no mission in mind. And then theres the case of a friend who drops an innocent note about whether you have interest in a watch hes looking to sell. These are troublesome, in the best way of course, because they typically represent the ultimate case of buying the seller and the piece tends to be trustworthy. This scenario is precise...
Back for their sixth Geneva watch auction season, Aurel Bacs & Livia Russo in association with Phillips auction house are on a pretty impressive winning streak. They are returning from a world-record shattering result (for a wristwatch) of $17.8 million when they sold THE Paul Newman Paul Newman Daytona in New York at the end of October. I specify wristwatch as to not offend Patek Phillipes overall record in the watch category with the $24 million reached for the Graves Super complication pocket watch sold in 2014 at Sothebys Geneva.I was lucky enough to be in New York to witness this historic moment and was amazed by the rest of the overall performance as well. For their first sale in ...
On October 28th we held a Speedmaster Get-Together in the center of Munich. We invited you, our readers, a few weeks ago and we received a huge number of registrations. We could ‘only invite about 40 people, for security and logistical reasons. But don t worry, we will be doing more of these in the near future.Speedmaster GTG MunichWhy Munich? Well, the other event during that weekend was MunichTime, so we guessed it might be interesting for people to visit that show and come to the Speedmaster GTG as well. A dedicated watch weekend, you could say. More so, a lot of our (Speedy Tuesday) readers are from German (Germany is #3 in the list of our reader s origin, the USA being #1 and the...
I continue to see progress at Antiquorum Geneva. The level of watches has seen a step up in this catalog and they already had some great results in their most recent Hong Kong sale. There is no massive pocket watch collection this time around, which is a relief for me as well. Overall, the outlook has been good ever since their separation with Antiquorum New York and I hope they keep up the good work.I had an interesting discussion with Julien Schaerer, Managing Director, during my early preview visit in Geneva. I was, again, curious about the massive size of this catalog. Just to clarify, when I say large catalogs I mean they regularly have 500+ lots in their sales and others like Christies...
This episode of 52Mondayz is kind of a goodbye to a watch. Soon, I will say goodbye to this beautiful Omega Seamaster 600 PloProf from the first generation. But before it is that time, let me talk a bit about this iconic divers watch from the 1970s.Omega Seamaster 600 PloProf54mm in width, 45mm in length and 15mm thickAfter four years of extensive testing Omega produced the first generation of the PloProf in the beginning of the seventies. The Compagnie Maritime d Expertises (short Comex) and well known professional diver Jaques Cousteau were of help to Omega with developing the first?waterproof watch designed and built solely for the diving professional. The watch was nicked PloProf, derive...
Urban Jrgensen watches reflect classic design, restrained elegance, and quiet confidence. Their beauty is the result of a long-lasting passion for uncompromising artisanship. Each piece is crafted with the belief that perfection is seldom the product of haste and that only an unwavering commitment to excellence can inspire emotion in those who will wear them.Named in tribute to Jacques Alfred Jrgensen, the last watchmaker of the Jurgensen family, the new Alfred model distils the best of the brands century-old tradition and simultaneously ads a touch of modernity to its collections.The iconic case with teardrop shape lugs is fashioned out of stainless steel and opts for a modern 42 mm diame...
Our auction reporter Sacha Davidoff is on top of the watch auctions to be held in Geneva. Just like his past reports for Fratello, you can read about the upcoming Christie s auction in Geneva and his highlights. Without further ado:Christie s GenevaWe have seen quite a bit of movement across the watch auction departments in Geneva and worldwide for that matter. The Chrisites Geneva watch department has had some changes to the team as well. With the unexpected departure of Thomas Perazzi, previously the head of watches Geneva, watch specialist Sabine Kegel has taken his place at the head of the department. During a record-setting year filled with surprising results above all expectations, it ...
Earlier this year, and we reported a few times about it, Seiko introduced the new SLA017 (SBDX019 for some markets). When I was in Japan about a month ago, doing a week long Grand Seiko manufactory tour with some of our readers, I had the chance to handle both the new Seiko SLA017 and the vintage Seiko 62MAS reference 6217-8001. Both watches belong to the?same person, who is an avid reader of Fratello and a fan of (Grand) Seiko watches.Seiko 62MAS and SLA017We did an in-depth coverage on the Seiko 62MAS in 2015 already (go here), so I won t repeat much of what has been written there. In short, the 62MAS was introduced in 1965 by Seiko and MAS stands for ‘autoMAtic Selfdater . This watc...
Oris introduces you to their Big Crown ProPilot Calibre 111 with blue dial. Most interesting about this watch is the in-house caliber 111 movement that is being used. This hand-wound movement was introduced a couple of years ago, and now also available in the Big Crown ProPilot watch. In their Big Crown ProPilot collection, you will find a variety of models (with different complications), but this is the only reference with an in-house movement. Normally, Oris core collections use third party movements (from Sellita for example) to keep their watch affordable and in a certain price bracket. The Oris Big Crown ProPilot Calibre 111 starts at 5,200 CHF (up to 5,500 CHF for the watch on a croco ...
If Henry Fischer, Sthrlings affably intense founder, had listened to the well-meaning conventional wisdom, then Sthrling would never have proved that terms like internet brand and quality timepiece can be used in the same sentence. I kept asking, Why not? he said. As in, Why not a watch brand that s manufactured in the same part of the world as Apple & Bose? And while I was being told why-300 years of various legacies and innovations-I wasnt getting an answer that really made sense.Crafted With A Brooklyn State Of MindWhile the products are manufactured in state-of-the-art overseas facilities, every other aspect of their development-from preliminary designs to final pre-production samp...
Last week was very impressive auction week. First, the Omega Speedmaster CK2915-1 that sold for a over 230.000 Euro via the Swedish auction house Bukowski (click here for our report) and then there was the Daytona ‘Paul Newman reference 6239, owned by Paul Newman himself, that fetched a whopping $17,752,500 USD at the Phillips auction in New York.Another great watch that was sold during that Phillips auction in New York last week, is the Omega Speedmaster Alaska III reference 145.022. As you know, it was exactly this model that inspired the Speedmaster Speedy Tuesday that we re so proud of, and several years ago we actually had one in our hands (read our story about the astronaut s w...
This week I ll wear my Bedat & Co No 8. A beautifully designed and constructed watch, which is hardly known and not often seen.Bedat & Co No 8, ref?888.018.310 C 52Mondayz, week #44Nowadays Bedat & Co has its focus totally on ladies watches. However, one, two decenia back, there were attractive mans watches in their program as well. And my No 8 is one of them.The reference of this model is 888.018.310 and it came either on a brown woven alligator strap with pin buckle or a black croco strap with rolled edges on a very original constructed folding clasp. Very elegant crown constructionThe main eye catcher of the?Bedat & Co No 8 is the crown which is integrated in the case mid...
Skeleton watches are a category on their own. Since it is almost Halloween I thought this was a good moment to talk about those watches. But before we talk about it I would like to show you my version.When you think about what is important for a watch, one of the first things that comes to mind is having a dial with good legibility. A couple of contrasting hands and indicators on there helps as well. With skeleton watches, legibility and other traditional design aspects move to the background and the (hand-made) technique becomes more important. A lot of design is dictated by the technical parts and their shapes. A true design challenge. You just can t change certain parts to keep the watch ...
Dress watches inspired by the traditions of watchmakingBleau Watches are the new kids on the block, influenced by the highest end of watchmaking, taking inspiration from some of the biggest names in independent watchmaking today.They have a mission to produce well made traditional style watches that dont break the bank. Dont get me wrong, theyre not raving about how cheap and affordable they are, instead about what is offered in the package they present, particularly appealing for this first run which is limited and heavily discounted for their Kickstarter launch.Lets just reel off a few features and see if it gets your attention; Swiss made movement, enamel dial, alligator strap, Flame-blue...
As per the title says this article is not about the latest iPhone extension screen, as well known as ‘smart watch . It however, details a tool watch. A purposely-built object for the ones in need of a companion during their (adventurous) journeys. The anomaly is that while it is not a smartwatch, it is a very smart watch. In terms of functions that is. Tissot released their T-Touch series almost 20 years ago (1999) and while some say the concept is outdated they are still among the strong sellers of the brand. The T-Touch is a tool watch, or rather instrument for your inner diver, sailor, adventurer. So, I left the Ballade at home grabbed the new Tissot T-Touch Expert Solar II and took...
This year, Omega not only introduced the 60th anniversary ‘Trilogy and the ‘Speedy Tuesday , they also brought us the Seamaster Aqua Terra 2017 models. Not too long ago, we published an article on the 15th anniversary of the Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra (you can find it here), showing you an overview of these models since the start.Every year, the number of new references that Omega introduces in Basel is just mind-boggling. I wouldn t mind if they would take it a notch down, but I guess that there s a market for each and anyone of them. Most people think I am a ‘Speedmaster -guy, which is surely true, but I also have a weak spot for the Constellation and some of the Seamast...
Quite spectacular for Speedmaster enthusiasts is the auction at Bukowskis tomorrow on October 25th in Stockholm. Two first generation Speedmaster watches, reference CK2915-1. This means not only the first generation, but really the very first (‘-1 ) models.According to Bukowskis, the pristine CK2915-1 from June 1958 is the most prestigious watch they ve ever auctioned. Both Speedmaster CK2915-1 watches have the original broad arrow hands, non-Seahorse inscription case back and the original base 1000 bezel in stainless steel. One is estimated at around 95K Euro, the other (older one) at approximately 37K Euro. Why this difference? Let s have a closer look.Bukowskis Speedmaster CK295-1 W...
Are you looking to buy an Omega Speedmaster but don t know where to start? We re here to help! Over the past 65+ years, Omega has created many variations of one of the world s most famous chronographs. The classic 42mm Moonwatch has been in the collection since 1965, and to the novice eye, little has changed since then. But if you look a bit closer, you will find that the Speedmaster evolved quite a bit in the decades that followed.In this Speedmaster guide, we ll give you an overview of the most important references of the Speedmaster (Professional) and some of its variations. Although this article isn t meant as a pricing guide, we will give some hints, of course. If you re already a knowl...
A design hommage with many details done right, the Monta Oceanking. Its looks clearly remember us of dive watches as seen half way the last century. Modern techniques make sure this watch stands out from a crowd however.The Monta Oceanking on my wrist for 52Mondayz week #43Monta Oceanking C 52MondayzAuthor Michael Stockton already wrote an extensive write up on the brand after Monta had decided to participate at Baselworld this year. Now I m happy to have the opportunity to actually wear one of their watches this week.Design hommage to dive watches as seen half way the last centuryMid-century design hommageWe might see a Submariner in every dive watch with a black rotating minute bezel and ...
