The Glashütte Original Senator Observer 1911 Julius Assmann is a sublime mix of the meticulous details only to be found in Glashütte mechanical watchmaking and that most enduring of boyhood heroes – the historical Polar Explorers.

The explorer involved in the creation of the Glashütte Original Senator Observer 1911 Julius Assmann is Roald Amundsen who’s pioneering team became the first to reach the geographic South Pole in 1911.  With no GPS and no means of communication you would be right in assuming that an accurate and reliable timekeeper was an essential piece of kit.  When his exploration team left the safety of their ship and its marine chronometer behind to begin their arduous trek, their only means of tracking their journey time and aiding their global positioning was their observation timepieces.  Julius Assmann designed and created some of the most accurate and durable chronometers and observation watches of his time.  An Assmann observation watch, created by a young and talented Glashütte watchmaker, Paul Löwe, was purchased by Amundsen in 1910 for use in his forthcoming exploration……  as they say, the rest is history.

If your watch is Glashütte-made then it is different to a Swiss-made watch both inside and out.  In 1864 Ferdinand A. Lange pioneered a new calibre design, one with a three quarter plate construction – tricky to make, but one which firmly holds all the micro components in place and also keeps out dust and dirt thus ensuring reliability and durability,  a design still in use in the region to this day.  Glashütte wristwatches are functional, elegant and instantly recognisable.  Glashütte watch designers realise that sometimes, less is more.

The Glashütte Original Senator Observer 1911 Julius Assmann pays tribute to both Assmann and Amundsen with a superb understated wristwatch.  The dial has been crafted using three layers of lacquer, the perfect backdrop for the polished and blued hands.  At the outer dial is a finely milled railtrack and the Arabic numerals are calligraphed to be curly, curvy and generous.  Just above 6 o’clock is the big date window synonymous with the brand and at 9 o’clock is a small seconds dial with a power reserve at 3, the latter recalls the AB/Auf indicator which on a traditional observation watch, with a manually wound movement, would indicate the running time.  The watchcase measures 44mm and is constructed from white gold.

Inside is the automatic Calibre 100-14 with 21 carat gold rotor.  The movement features the brand’s patented bilateral winding step gear system which ensures the ultimate in  power efficiency, also of note is a reset mechanism which enables time to be reset with accuracy to the second – because the second hand is not attached to either the winding stem or the crown, the movement continues to run even when the crown is pulled out, this also means that there is no nasty friction or shock to the mechanisms during adjustment.

The Glashütte Original Senator Observer 1911 Julius Assmann features an honorary engraving to the date of Amundsen’s arrival at the South Pole, 14 December 1911 and also an inscription in honour to Julius Assmann.  The piece will be a limited edition of just 25 pieces, each presented on a brown calfskin leather strap.

Related Articles

Glashütte Original Sixties Square Tourbillon Limited Edition

Glashütte Original Seventies Panorama Date

Glashütte Original PanoMatic Counter XL

Popularity: 3% [?]

Glashütte Original add a new piece to their portfolio – the Glashütte Original PanoMatic Counter XL.

The latest piece is powered by the new Calibre 96-01 automatic movement which is based on the acclaimed Glashütte Original Calibre 95 with its patented bilateral winding step gear system ensuring ultimate efficiency.  The latest evolution of this calibre features a novel complication – a counter positioned at the 9 o’clock which enables the wearer to count up, count down or reset to zero using pushers at the 9, 8, and 10 o’clock positions respectively.  The counter displays the same generous Arabic numerals as the traditional Panomatic date window (which appears at the 3 o’clock) although this time the numerals are red.  With this complication alone requiring 217 individual components in its construction, the unusual counter function is a perfect example of the “we can therefore we shall…” ethos that makes the master watchmakers and in-house engineers at Glashütte Original stand apart from their contemporaries in terms of functionality and aesthetics.

Glashütte Original PanoMatic Counter XL

The hours and minutes are displayed in the lower half of the dial with a “floating” chronograph stop-seconds at the upper half beneath which are the 30-minute counters and subsidiary seconds, their zero markers re-positioned so not to be obscured by the chronograph which overlaps them.

Glashütte Original PanoMatic Counter XL

The high level of finish, the three-quarter plate, Duplex swan-neck fine adjustment, Glashütte ribbing and beveled edges are viewable through anti-glare sapphire crystal front and back and this perfectly legible and truly functional piece is presented on a black alligator leather strap.

Popularity: 26% [?]