Whether they are pilots’ watches, divers, classic models or motor-racing inspired, IWC’s collections are richly themed with a variety of designs. The Schaffhausen watchmaker also offers watch lovers a wide range of complications, one of which, the perpetual calendar, is one of the most complex to design and the most intriguing to wear on the wrist. How can anyone fail to be impressed by a watch that can account for different month lengths and all the leap years in the Gregorian calendar up to the year 2100, using only a few notched gear wheels hidden behind the dial? At IWC we have Kurt Klaus to thank for this complication. He is the manufacture’s legendary watchmaker who, in 1985, created the autonomous perpetual calendar for the Da Vinci model. While the four IWC perpetual calendars that we have selected offer the same classic complications – date, day, month, year, leap year and moon phase – the displays differ, they don’t all have the same automatic manufacture movement, and the watches themselves come in a variety of styles.
Jumping year programmed up to the year 2499
The Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Top Gun and the Portugieser Perpetual Calendar have the same dial arrangement, with four counters displaying the date at 3 o’clock, the day at 9 o’clock and the month at 6 o’clock. The four-figure jumping year between 7 and 8 o’clock is programmed up to the year 2499 (although owners should be aware that in 2300 they will have to replace the century module bearing the figures 20, 21 and 22 with a new one, which will take them through to 2499). These timepieces also have a double moon phase display for the northern and southern hemispheres at 12 o’clock, a small hacking seconds and a power reserve indicator.
The Top Gun model presented at the SIHH 2016 houses the manufacture calibre 51614 beating at 21,600 vph, which supplies a 7-day power reserve thanks to its Pellaton automatic winding system. This pilot’s watch with its flight deck-inspired design has a generously sized 48 mm diameter case in black high-tech ceramic, a black dial with white Arabic numerals and white luminescent hands. A matching calfskin strap completes the ensemble.
The Portugieser Perpetual Calendar follows the style, materials (white and red gold) and blue and slate grey dial colours typical of this classic collection. The moon phase window sprinkled with stars is also classic in style. Smaller than the Top Gun (44.2 mm) and slightly slimmer, it is driven by the 28,800 vibrations per hour supplied by the twin-barrelled manufacture 52615 calibre, whose 18K red gold rotor and bridge finishes can be seen through the sapphire case back. This elegant Portugieser, which comes with a black Santoni alligator strap, also exists in a simple moon phase version.
Digital readout
The Ingenieur Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month and the Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month supply the perpetual calendar functions through another family of manufacture calibres, the 89802 and the 89801 respectively, which generate a digital readout of the date, month and leap year. In order to manage these five discs, which have to be activated simultaneously, IWC has developed a spring-loaded lever mechanism to supply the necessary energy in a way that a classic automatic winding system could never achieve. In addition to the perpetual calendar, these calibres also provide a flyback function and stopwatch hours, minutes and seconds. They beat at 28,800 vph and give a power reserve of 68 hours. The central chronograph hand measures up to 60 seconds, while the chronograph hours and minutes are read off a counter at 12 o’clock.
In terms of styling, the Ingenieur channels a technical and sporty vibe inspired by the dashboard of Formula 1 cars, and is a product of IWC’s partnership with the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team. The big square figures of the date and month stand out from the disc mechanisms beneath, which are visible through semi-transparent sapphire inlays. The 46 mm black case made of titanium aluminide – a material used in F1 for valves and pistons – features pushers, a crown, screw heads and crown protector in black high-tech ceramic. The rotor, which is visible through the sapphire back, is in the form of an alloy wheel rim, and the black rubber strap is inlaid with alligator leather.
The Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month advertises its diving credentials with its large 49 mm diameter, its unidirectional internal and external rotating bezels equipped with IWC’s SafeDive system, its 100 m water resistance and luminescent indices and hands. On the black dial, the semi-transparent sapphire of the Ingenieur has been replaced with perforated covers inspired by submarine filtration systems. This limited edition of 50 pieces combines titanium, rubber and red gold in an unapologetically sporty but elegant design.
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