Dress watches focus on simple time indication without frills, yet they fascinate with a design that is as straightforward as it is elegant. With this refined charisma, they are perfect for festive occasions, special events or classic business meetings, but also combine intricate and casual styles. Their pure design does not mean uniform or even bland, but rather embodies a sophistication of its own. After all, this genre offers a great diversity and is quite individually expressed by each brand. Here are three new dress watches off the beaten paths that make for a grand entrance on the wrist.
Erwin Sattler is among the finest makers of pendulum clocks in the industry today. Its precision objects are fully crafted in its own factory on the outskirts of Munich, Germany, and have enjoyed unbroken popularity for decades. For some years, Erwin Sattler has also been manufacturing limited edition wristwatches. The latest example is the Classica Medium, a three-hand watch in stainless steel that is limited to 50 pieces. Like all Sattler timepieces, it is characterized by excellent quality and dedication to detail. With its understated typography, Roman numerals, authentic railroad minute track and blued hands, it exudes the same elegant appeal as the company’s high-end clocks. The Classica Medium is powered by an automatic movement, the exquisitely finished caliber STP 1-11. Its decorations come to life through the sapphire case back. Pricing is marked at approximately $3,600 when converted to USD.
To learn more, visit Erwin Sattler, here.
Catching up on the success of the Prelude Chronograph, Staudt Twenthe, a young Dutch brand founded by Yvo Staudt, presents a three-hand version with a date aperature. The Prelude Automatic likewise combines the stylistic simplicity of vintage timepieces with striking elegance. The slender hands and applied Roman numerals beautifully contrast against the sun brushed dark backdrop. The case, which is only 8.85mm high houses a superbly finished Swiss automatic movement with a 56-hour power reserve. Its sophisticated finishings can be admired through the sapphire crystal case back. Pricing starts at approximately $2,970 when converted to USD.
To learn more, visit Staudt Twenthe, here.
An insider tip for enthusiasts of top-notch custom-made manufacture watches for more than 30 years, Hentschel Hamburg specializes in maritime historically inspired timepieces. The H1 Chronometer Mystique is the latest addition to the H1 watch family. Like the other members, the style-defining simplicity of historical marine chronometers that were once crafted in the brand’s home city, Hamburg, Germany, is combined with expressive elegance. The refined leaf-shaped steel hands beautifully contrast against the mysteriously dark background with its anthracite hues and tiny metallic inclusions. The printed inscriptions are slightly raised, which lends an exceptional dimensionality to the dial. This includes the slender Arabic numerals typical of the watch family. Together with the circulating chemin de fer style minute track and the slightly recessed small seconds sub dial located at six o’clock, they further enhance the classic personality. This rings also true for the flat, three-piece case polished to a high gloss. It is distinguished by the characteristically contoured flanks, boldly curved lugs, and a notably slim bezel. With a thickness of just 8.5 mm, it feels like a second skin on the wrist.
While the outer appearance is inspired by the purity of historical chronometers, the manufacture caliber inside is based on the historic hand-wound AS 1130. It has been constructively optimized and upgraded to meet modern-day standards and is a celebration of the opulent beauty of traditional movement finishing. Among the finesses are the finely detailed gear train bridge, the dual sunburst finish on the winding wheels, the hand-blued screws, the gold-set and screwed chatons, and the minutely bevelled angles. Every surface is manually finished with highest attention to detail. In accordance with the requirements of the Hamburg-based Deutsche Seewarte (German Naval Observatory), it is fine-adjusted in six positions and tested for 1,000 hours. The swan-neck adjustment is another sophisticated highlight, as it enables the particularly precise regulation of the accuracy within the range of seconds.
Pricing starts at approximately $9,560 when converted to USD.
To learn more, visit Hentschel Hamburg, here.
