UNIVERSAL GENEVA - Lot 557

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Lot n° 557
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Estimation :
2000 - 3000 EUR
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Result : 3 640EUR
UNIVERSAL GENEVA - Lot 557
UNIVERSAL GENEVA De Luxe Bumper Polerouter Ref. B 10234 3 No. 1792990 Circa 1955 Bracelet watch in 18k (750) yellow gold Case: round, signed crown, screw-down caseback, signed with key hallmark no. 2 Dial: black with gold "crosshair dial" flange, hour-markers engraved in the flange and applied to the dial, dauphine hands, central seconds, applied logo, signed Movement: self-winding "bumper", signed - Calibre 138SS Strap/clasp: leather strap with gilded metal buckle, unsigned Diameter: 35 mm Gross weight: 47.9 g. Indicative condition report: at time of writing, traces of wear and tear, knocks on back, markings on back and hallmark on horn visible, movement in working order, need servicing, no warranty. The Polerouter was born in 1954 from a collaboration between Universal Genève and Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), to mark the opening of the first transpolar commercial routes linking Copenhagen to Los Angeles via the North Pole. These routes exposed crews to intense magnetic fields, requiring a watch that was robust, precise and worthy of the elegance expected of an airline pilot. The design was entrusted to a certain Gérald Genta, then aged just 23, who came up with a 35 mm case with twisted lugs, a biton dial surrounded by a guilloché bezel known as a "tuxedo", and a three-dimensional effect obtained thanks to a tension ring bearing the indexes, fixed under the crystal, patented by Universal Genève in 1953. A formal coup for a beginner who, twenty years later, would sign the Royal Oak and the Nautilus. The very first "Polarouter" models were powered by the 138SS caliber with automatic bumper winding, a shuttle system oscillating between two spring stops, in vogue in the 1950s. This movement was replaced in the spring of 1955 by the famous micro-rotor caliber 215, and the watch was renamed "Polerouter". Reference B 10234-3 belongs to the De Luxe declination, an all-gold version produced around 1954, equipped with the 138SS bumper caliber in a 36 mm case. The iconic dial features the characteristic composition of the chapter ring model, with a central reticle in a solid 18-carat gold case. The black dial variant of this reference is particularly rare, with only a handful known to date. This piece combines several sought-after qualities: it represents the original bumper generation, predating the micro-rotor; it bears Genta's founding design in its most luxurious version; and it bears witness to a precise moment in the history of civil aviation.
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