Co-Axial Anniversary Edition by Roger Smith and George Daniels

George Daniels is considered by many “the greatest living watchmaker.” This extraordinary – if fictional – title is not undeserved: Daniels, now 84 years old, made all his watches by hand; he invented new and important elements to add to horology's collective knowledge; and he has passed on his acquired know-how in both writings and teachings.

The element Daniels is probably most famous for is the co-axial escapement that Omega now uses in the lion's share of its movements. Daniels celebrated this escapement not only in his own Millennium wristwatch series (completed with Roger Smith's help). It also continues to live on in Roger Smith's own handmade bespoke watches.

Smith was Daniels's only apprentice, and it is he who carries the torch of traditional English watchmaking. The visuals of the new Co-Axial Anniversary Edition, designed by both masters and manufactured in Smith's Isle of Man workshop, are based on Daniels's 1994 one-off tourbillon chronograph pocket watch. The manually wound movement is fully styled according to traditional English watchmaking: gold-plated, frosted surfaces emphasize the free-sprung balance and – naturally – the co-axial escapement. The time, date, and power reserve displays of this 35-piece limited edition housed in a 40 mm case are found on a hand-guilloché solid silver dial with 18-karat gold chapters. “Simplicity is seen as the keynote of enduring beauty,” Daniels and Smith sum up.