IWC Portugieser ‘7 days’ Full set

The IWC Portuguese is one of the most loved models from the Schaffhausen manufacturer. The model was born in 1939 when two Portuguese businessmen, Rodrigues and Teixeira, visited IWC with the idea to build an oversized stainless steel wristwatch. Apart from the size, its precision had to be very reliable as well. IWC chose to use a modified pocket-watch movement (cal. 74) that could match the precision of a marine chronometer.

The design for the Portuguese was quite ahead of its time. Today, if we hear a watch has a diameter of 42mm, it doesn’t sound all that large. Back in 1939 the average wristwatch diameter measured about 34mm, back then the Portuguese was a giant. With a thin bezel and clean dial it looks even bigger. Since the model aged so well new models were introduced in the 90s and 2000s.

This is one of those modern executions, the automatic Portuguese with 7-days power reserve. The in-house developed movement is impressive compared to the valjoux movements they used before. This generation was re-launched in 2010 and it is powered by 51011 calibre. The movement itself operates a 3 Hz frequency and houses a Breguet spring coupled with the famous bidirectional Pellaton self-winding system. This allows the performance of such a high power reserve of 168 hours when fully wound.

This specific piece has a silver dial with blue applique indexes and blued leaf hands. The date is displayed at the 6 o’clock. The two subdials display the power reserve and seconds register. The condition of this piece is mint and it’s equipped with a brown crocodile strap with an IWC-clasp. Available now!