IWC Red Gold Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Watch
An 18ct Red Gold Portugieser Perpetual Calendar watch, IWC. Ref IW502306 circa 2014. 1.74 in. 18ct 5N red gold case, with Automatic in-house IWC calibre 51613 movement designed by the legendary Kurt Klaus this technical marvel not only knows that every four years is a leap year but also keeps the moonphase so accurately it will only deviate by one day every 577.5 years. Made of 428 individual components, 62 jewels, featuring a full perpetual calendar with moon-phase, 7-day power reserve, Pellaton winding system with oscillating weight with 22ct gold medallion. Perlage and Cotes de Geneve decoration. Silvered dial with rose gold appliqued Arabic numerals and hands, displays for day, date, month, year, power reserve and moon-phase on a royal blue disc with red gold stars and moon. Sapphire crystal glass with anti-reflective coating on both sides and display case back. 22/0.71 in. brown alligator strap with 18ct red gold folding deployant buckle. Case and buckle signed and hallmarked, dial signed, Swiss made. Presented with original paperwork and box.
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- Date Aperture - A date aperture is a cut out section in the face of a watch or clock, displaying the day of the month.
- Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
- Moon Dial - If we imagine life in the 17th century, the only source of ascertaining the time of day or night would have been the local church or municipal clock striking every quarter hour, and able to be heard by all in the village. In England, when longcase clocks became popular and more affordable in the late 17th century, the function of timekeeping and source of time was moved to within the home.
An additional feature on some longcase clocks was to display the phases of the moon, that is the new moon, the full moon and the waning moon over the lunar 29 ½ day cycle. This information was important for farmers for working out cropping schedules; for travellers to know the amount of moonlight on a night they planned to travel; and for those who lived near the sea required knowledge of the tides.
Where included, the moon dial is usually in the form of a disc incorporated into the main dial plate, usually in the arched top section. The lunar cycle starts with the new moon displaying, which is a dark night sky and no man-in-the-moon face being displayed, and then progresses to the full moon face showing on the 15th day of the lunar cycle, and back to no face displaying as the moon wanes. Most lunar dials are partially concealed on each side of their opening in the main dial plate by semi-circular "humps" that allow the painted face to emerge slowly just as the real moon goes out of and back into the earth's shadow.
Nowadays, details of the lunar cycle is published in diaries, almanacs, and newspapers and although some modern longcase clocks are still manufactured with working moon dials, they are more for decoration than for use. - Movement - The technical name for the workings of a clock or watch, and does not include the dial or case.
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