Watch Dandy

On day one of SalonQP, the United Kingdom’s largest watch fair, Montblanc has unveiled a new version of the Orbis Terrarum that’s extremely limited in production and quite patriotic (if you’re British, of course). The company has decided to make just five pieces based on the 4810 Orbis Terrarum (not to be confused with the earlier Spirit Orbis Terrarum), with a small twist: a Union Jack flag signaling the daytime hours on the day/night disc indicator.

The last time we presented a limited edition watch, it was the Zenith El Primero Original For HODINKEE, a vintage-inspired chronograph limited to an edition of just 25 pieces. We sold out in a little over an hour and had over 350 people on the waiting list by the time we woke up the next morning. Well, luckily we’ve been hard at work on other collaborations and today we’re unveiling our latest. This is the NOMOS Glashütte Metro Chronometer Limited Edition For HODINKEE and we couldn’t be more excited to tell you all about it.

Innovation is a fine thing, but one of the nice things about mechanical watchmaking is that there are some watches and some movements that have changed very little over a surprisingly long period of time. Conservatism doesn’t necessarily mean timidity, and many smart companies understand very well that giving your clients a direct, tangible relationship with the past is a great way to build a sense of emotional connection to the present (as a matter of fact, Rolex has built an entire business model on the idea of, if not a deliberately glacial product development cycle, at least a keen sense of when something is not broken, and, therefore, not in need of fixing). Watches like the Speedmaster Moonwatch and the Zenith El Primero are in need of no fiddling, and both of those particular watches show just how much longevity a great movement in a great design can really have. In the same class is another, slightly-less-often discussed wristwatch: the Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox.