Online Catalogue
11 March 2026 - Basel Watch Auction
Provenance
from the original owner
Accessories: warranty card dated 16.04.2016, presentation box and outer card box, Portugieser perpetual calendar operating instructions leaflet, warranty service leaflet and goodies like cloth to clean the watch, red sealed capsule for year indications
IWC Schaffhausen represents one of the most fascinating chapters in Swiss watchmaking, founded in 1868 by American engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones. What makes IWC particularly distinctive is its unique position as an American-founded manufacture in the heart of Switzerland, bringing together Anglo-Saxon precision with Swiss craftsmanship.
The Portugieser collection emerged from a remarkable story in 1938–1939. Two Portuguese businessmen, Rodrigues and Teixeira, approached IWC with an unusual request: they wanted wristwatches with the precision of marine chronometers. IWC responded by adapting their pocket watch caliber 74 into a wristwatch case, creating timepieces of exceptional size for that era – 41,5 mm when most watches measured around 32 mm.
This bold approach resulted in watches of extraordinary precision and legibility. The Portugieser collection quickly became legendary for its clean, uncluttered dial design and its remarkable accuracy. The collection disappeared for several decades before being revived in the 1990s, when it became one of IWC’s most celebrated lines.
Several houses illustrate this type of horological heritage beautifully. The Portugieser collection demonstrates how technical innovation can create timeless aesthetic codes that endure across generations.
IWC Schaffhausen represents one of the most fascinating chapters in Swiss watchmaking, founded in 1868 by American engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones. What makes IWC particularly distinctive is its unique position as an American-founded manufacture in the heart of Switzerland, bringing together Anglo-Saxon precision with Swiss craftsmanship.
The Portugieser collection emerged from a remarkable story in 1938–1939. Two Portuguese businessmen, Rodrigues and Teixeira, approached IWC with an unusual request: they wanted wristwatches with the precision of marine chronometers. IWC responded by adapting their pocket watch caliber 74 into a wristwatch case, creating timepieces of exceptional size for that era – 41,5 mm when most watches measured around 32 mm.
This bold approach resulted in watches of extraordinary precision and legibility. The Portugieser collection quickly became legendary for its clean, uncluttered dial design and its remarkable accuracy. The collection disappeared for several decades before being revived in the 1990s, when it became one of IWC’s most celebrated lines.
Several houses illustrate this type of horological heritage beautifully. The Portugieser collection demonstrates how technical innovation can create timeless aesthetic codes that endure across generations.
Online Catalogue 11 March 2026 - Basel Watch Auction Lot 411
IWC
“Portugieser”, Perpetual Calendar
Ref. IW503401, No. 6017981
Circa 2016
A 18k white gold automatic wristwatch
with perpetual calendar and moon phases,
7 days power reserve
Case: round, transparent case back with
screws, signed and numbered
Dial: dark blue with applied Arabic
numerals, outer minute track, three
registers for the date indication, power
reserve 7 days at 3, months indication
at 6, and subsidiary seconds and days
of the week at 9, aperture for the moon
phases at 12, four digit disc for the
year indication, signed
Movement: automatic, open rotor with
logo and brand signature, 7 days power
reserve, 54 jewels, signed
Buckle/Clasp: 18k white gold deployant
clasp, signed
Dimensions: 44 mm
Weight: 166 g
CHF 15'000 – 20'000
Provenance
from the original owner
Accessories: warranty card dated 16.04.2016, presentation box and outer card box, Portugieser perpetual calendar operating instructions leaflet, warranty service leaflet and goodies like cloth to clean the watch, red sealed capsule for year indications
IWC Schaffhausen represents one of the most fascinating chapters in Swiss watchmaking, founded in 1868 by American engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones. What makes IWC particularly distinctive is its unique position as an American-founded manufacture in the heart of Switzerland, bringing together Anglo-Saxon precision with Swiss craftsmanship.
The Portugieser collection emerged from a remarkable story in 1938–1939. Two Portuguese businessmen, Rodrigues and Teixeira, approached IWC with an unusual request: they wanted wristwatches with the precision of marine chronometers. IWC responded by adapting their pocket watch caliber 74 into a wristwatch case, creating timepieces of exceptional size for that era – 41,5 mm when most watches measured around 32 mm.
This bold approach resulted in watches of extraordinary precision and legibility. The Portugieser collection quickly became legendary for its clean, uncluttered dial design and its remarkable accuracy. The collection disappeared for several decades before being revived in the 1990s, when it became one of IWC’s most celebrated lines.
Several houses illustrate this type of horological heritage beautifully. The Portugieser collection demonstrates how technical innovation can create timeless aesthetic codes that endure across generations.
IWC Schaffhausen represents one of the most fascinating chapters in Swiss watchmaking, founded in 1868 by American engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones. What makes IWC particularly distinctive is its unique position as an American-founded manufacture in the heart of Switzerland, bringing together Anglo-Saxon precision with Swiss craftsmanship.
The Portugieser collection emerged from a remarkable story in 1938–1939. Two Portuguese businessmen, Rodrigues and Teixeira, approached IWC with an unusual request: they wanted wristwatches with the precision of marine chronometers. IWC responded by adapting their pocket watch caliber 74 into a wristwatch case, creating timepieces of exceptional size for that era – 41,5 mm when most watches measured around 32 mm.
This bold approach resulted in watches of extraordinary precision and legibility. The Portugieser collection quickly became legendary for its clean, uncluttered dial design and its remarkable accuracy. The collection disappeared for several decades before being revived in the 1990s, when it became one of IWC’s most celebrated lines.
Several houses illustrate this type of horological heritage beautifully. The Portugieser collection demonstrates how technical innovation can create timeless aesthetic codes that endure across generations.