Manufacturer: Daniel Roth Year: Circa 1990s Case No: 69 Material: 18K white gold Calibre: Automatic, cal. DR500, 31 jewels Bracelet/Strap: Crocodile Clasp/Buckle: 18K white gold Daniel Roth pin buckle Dimensions: 40mm length x 38mm width Signed: Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
Catalogue Essay
One of the most brilliant watchmakers of his generation, Daniel Roth first worked for Audemars Piguet in the late 1960s. It was in 1973, when he was still in his twenties, that he changed the face of modern horology as we know it when he joined Breguet, then a brand on the verge of bankruptcy that only made a handful of timepieces. Roth recreated wristwatches directly inspired by Abraham-Louis Breguet’s pocket watches, producing some of the first modern perpetual calendar and tourbillon wristwatches.
In 1989, Roth embarked his journey of becoming a true independent watchmaker and establish his own brand under his name. Inspired by Breguet timepieces, he established a distinctive aesthetic codes that cemented as the signature of the brand, unique and unmistakably Daniel Roth, the double-ellipse case shape and pinstripe guilloché dials have become collector’s beloved.
The present chronograph encased in a 18K white gold case fitted with a white lacquered dial features a rarely seen luminous Arabic numerals, giving this timepiece a modern and casual appeal. In 1996, the firm began to produce automatic chronographs powered by the Zenith El Primero movement dubbed the DR500 distinguished by the three registers and date function at 4 o’clock. Numbered 69 and preserved in excellent condition, the present work of art by one of the first true independent watchmaker is one not to miss.