Santa came late this year... but still in time to cheer up the final of the year. And he brought a large box made of wood... any guess? The content is what I had been lusting for a long time. The inner suede lining has a dedication from Omega to Mademoiselle Clara Murset who obviously had been an employee of the Omega factory (or in one of their offices, who knows...) for a long period of time. Also the back of the watch shows the same inscription I think this is the rare instance where a dedication adds to the value. And here is the clock in all it´s glory: It is one of the 8 days jump second chronometers in an unusual case/dial/surrounding iteration. The cut out gilded surrounding of the dial is well known in combo with the plain case variant - see below an example with red colored background for comparison. The other special feature of the new acquisition is the uneven color of the green background which is real and not an artefact of bad photography/lighting. You can see the red background on the other example is very evenly colored. There are examples with even green background too, but this (new to my collection) example differs quite distinctly and gives it a unique efect. Hope you can share a bit of my enthusiasm for this uncommon piece (I am sure at least @OMTOM will do!). This year ends successfully - let´s see what the New Year will bring in horology? I wish you all a pleasant and successfull New Year - may god Kairos bring you lots of joy - but what is more important: stay in good health! I am happy to be part of this (mostly) kind and successful community
That is quite frankly the most gorgeous time piece I've seen in quite some time! Well done Erich it is a thing of beauty and I'm sure the other Tom will concur
Interesting dial differences - one has an applied metal log while the other is inked. Arabic & shark tooth versus Roman Numeral and stick markers, yet both use the same willow leaf hands and minute / second track and case style. I guess there's just as much dial variation with Omega's clocks as with their watches. Erich / @mac_omega: are the movements the same 8 day jump seconds chronometers?
@Tom Dick I'm sure the other Tom will concur HE DOES! @mac_omega Hope you can share a bit of my enthusiasm for this uncommon piece ABSOLUTELY I think this is the rare instance where a dedication adds to the value. AGREED @mac_omega the uneven color of the green background which is real and not an artefact of bad photography/lighting. The 59-8D SCS (later Cal.120) was made from 1941 into the mid-1950s and there were various different case, dial and dial-backing versions over that period. One of the dial-backing options was a sort of ‘marbled’ or almost tortoiseshell effect which is translucent. I have seen only dark green and dark red versions. As you describe Erich, yours is not the usual ‘even’ colour but this marbled form. Here is an image of the red ‘marbled’ version. Erich, a delight – and in beautiful condition. And so nice to know something about its history.
Erich, I hope you don’t mind if I offer comment… Omega introduced the (20 jewel) 59-8D SCS (chronometer standard) in 1941. It added ‘a layer’ to the 59-8D which had been their mainstay for larger clocks of all kinds since 1926 – and this ‘layer’ was the jump second mechanism (‘SCS’ is an abbreviation of ‘seconde au centre sautante’ which is French for jumping-centre-second). In passing, I have seen the SCS clock without a second hand! Presumably it has had a problem, maybe parts were not available, and the SCS ‘layer’ (together with second hand) have simply been removed – the clock will still work but it is no longer an SCS! Omega did NOT make a 59-8D SCS without a second hand. That original 59-8D SCS in 1941 was ‘hacked’ by means of a knob which could be twisted (and interrupted the jump second ‘escapement’). Later in 1941, Omega introduced the T1 version which (among other things) removed this hacking knob: hacking was done instead by pressing down on the time-setting knob (and a tiny bar interrupted the jump second mechanism). Omega continued making the 59-8D SCS into the mid-1950s – and with the change of calibre names it became the Cal.120 (but otherwise the same movement). Omega was still making the 59-8D and that was named the cal.110. The 59-8D was made with both key- and stem-wind: the SCS was only ever a key-wound movement. Both the 59-8D and the SCS version were successes over many years. Omega’s later attempt to introduce a jump second wristwatch (1952, Cal.372 Synchrobeat) was a different (well-known) story. Maybe the size factor was relevant? Tom
Tom, I appreciate it very much that you took over the explanation part about the movement - I think not many (if any) on OF are so knowledgable about this special subject, I could not have done better - you are the expert with the background knowledge... Your explanation of the "uneven" background color is spot on with the description: "a sort of ‘marbled’ or almost tortoiseshell effect" - indeed it also reminded me of tortoiseshell... you as a nativ speaker hit the nail... it seems that my school English is not sufficient enough...
Wow! What a beautiful piece - the green background and arabic numerals really make this stand out even more. Congratulations on a lovely find (y)
That is really spectacular, what an amazing piece to own, congratulations on an amazing find. Speaking of which, there must be a story in how you managed to find and purchase it which I would really love to hear.
@mac_omega: That's a nice example, congratulations! I have some almost romantic information about the name Mürset (pronounced "Mür-set"): It is an old family name from a place called Twann, a small wine producing village at the Lake of Bienne, approximately 10km away from Bienne's Omega factory. In Twann, the family Mürset is known for a long tradition of producing wine. So the name alone stands for a historic piece of local wine culture. It also seems that Clara Mürset was not married, as the dedication reads "mademoiselle" (= Miss, not Mrs.) All these infos definitely increase the value of the dedication! Here's a picture of Twann: Picture from http://www.guerletweinbau.ch/fileadmin/img/startseite.jpg And the church in Schernelz, just above Twann, is a very popular spot for weddings - I wonder why And here's a link to a winery called Domaine Mürset http://www.muerset-weine.ch