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Rolex watch in original packaging. Rolex SA (/ ˈ r oʊ l ɛ k s /) is a Swiss watch brand and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. [2] Founded in 1905 as Wilsdorf and Davis by German businessman Hans Wilsdorf and his brother-in-law Alfred Davis in London, the company registered Rolex as the brand name of its watches in 1908 and became Rolex Watch Co. Ltd. in 1915.
GASTON BREITLING. Gaston Breitling created one of the first wrist-worn chronographs with an independent pusher at 2 o’clock. It separated the chronograph pusher (that controlled the three chronograph functions: “start,” “stop,” and “reset-to-zero”) from the crown. This stroke of genius not only made the chronograph easier to use ...
- Rolex’s First Oyster Chronograph
- Post-War
- The Official “Founding” of Tudor
- Rolex on The Wrists of Men Who Matter
- Onward, Upward, and Fast-Forward
- The Grails of The Future
- Another 50,000 Chronometers in The Books
- Rolex Carves Out Its Future Image
- An Icon Is Born
- Diving to New Depths
Around 1945, Rolexintroduced its first waterproof Oyster chronograph, reference 4500. This 36mm anti-magnetic watch featured a very similar case to the Datejust, but without a fluted bezel. Instead, the smooth bezel appeared one with the case itself. With its “monoblock” appearance, modern-day enthusiasts nicknamed this model the “Monoblocco.” It c...
In 1945, Rolexproduced its 50,000th certified Swiss chronometer. Wilsdorf sought to give this benchmark timepiece to a worthy, heroic recipient. His choice was General Henri Guisan, commander-in-chief of the Swiss army during World War II. Wary of a Nazi invasion, Guisan had strengthened the most vulnerable areas of the Swiss border. He had also de...
In 1946, Hans Wilsdorf officially registered Montres Tudor SA. Though Wilsdorf had, in fact, produced Tudorwatches in some capacity for the Australian market since the early 1930s. After the war, however, he felt it was time to properly establish the company. On March 6, 1946, Wilsdorf stated, In 1947, Tudor produced its first water-resistant model...
In 1947, just three years after Rolexproduced its 50,000th chronometer, the brand produced its 100,000th. To mark the occasion, Wilsdorf again sought to give it to someone of great historical importance. This time, he set his sights on Sir Winston Churchill, former Prime Minister of the UK, whose leadership during World War II had inspired millions...
Rolexproduced its first triple-register Oyster chronograph in 1947. The Rolex Dato-Compax reference 4767 was the brand’s first chronograph with a 12-hour totalizer. Equipped with the Valjoux caliber 72C, the watch also featured a triple calendar with blue pointer date indications on the perimeter of the dial and day/month apertures between 11 and o...
In 1950, Rolexalso introduced the world’s first automatic watch with a triple calendar and moonphase in a water-resistant case. The 36mm Oyster reference 6062 was the second of only three Rolex references to this day to feature a moonphase complication (the others being the prior, non-water-resistant reference 8171 “Padellone” and the current Celli...
In 1951 Rolexproduced its 150,000th chronometer. Continuing the pattern of honoring the great heroes of World War II, this time, Rolex wanted to give the watch to Dwight D. Eisenhower. The five-star American General, Supreme Allied Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force, and the architect of Operation Overlord (“D-Day”) was responsible for som...
1953 was a year of brand-defining developments for Rolex. The first among these was the debut of Cyclops date magnifier. As the story goes, Hans Wilsdorf’s second wife, Betty Wilsdorf-Mettler, had a hard time reading the date on the Datejust. Wilsdorf pondered over a solution to this problem until one morning, inspiration struck. While washing his ...
In fact, the now-legendary Submariner was not far behind. Brand director René-Paul Jeanneret, himself a diving enthusiast, teamed up with diving legend Jacques Cousteau to convince Wilsdorf that a professional diving watch would be a worthy addition to the catalog. The watch would not only be technically capable but also elegant enough to wear ever...
1953 was also a year for extreme accomplishments. Pushing the limits of its water-resistant technology, Rolexaimed to make a watch that was water-resistant to at least 6,000m. After several failed attempts, the engineers at Rolex finally found a design that worked. The 42.7mm watch was called the Deep Sea Special, and it featured a massively domed ...
Jul 5, 2021 · A golden age. In the first decade following Breitling’s relocation, the manufacturer’s reputation thrived, and its watches surged in popularity. Léon Breitling’s former one-man operation grew to employ 60 people, and in 1893, Breitling patented a stopwatch movement with an 8-day power reserve. In 1896, the brand also patented a ...
Apr 21, 2024 · Probably the best-known example is the Cosmograph Daytona: Rolex began encasing a modified version in its chronographs in 1987. This transformed the Daytona into a self-winding chronograph. The Daytona continued to encase Zenith’s movement until the year 2000, albeit with a reduced oscillating frequency of only 28,800 hourly vibrations and a balance wheel equipped with Microstella adjusting ...
The brand takes off — 1935. As planes reached greater heights, Breitling flew alongside them. Whether his brand was developing new wristwatches for the pilots or dashboard instruments to help time and navigate while in the air, they were making the cockpit a more functional — and elegant — place.
People also ask
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Jun 12, 2020 · 1821: Mr Nicolas Rieussec’s Timewriter. A design since aped by the Montblanc watch of the same name, it dropped an ink dot onto a rotating paper disc to time horses. A chronograph in the truest “drawing time” sense. 1913: Longines Calibre 13.33Z. The first purpose-built wristwatch chronograph is a “doctor’s watch” with pulsometer ...
