IWC Schaffhausen Pays Tribute To Its Founder

IWC Schaffhausen, Switzerland’s best-known watch manufacturer pays tribute to its founder Florentine Ariosto Jones, the creator of the famous Jones calibre, by launching a new limited edition F. A. Jones Portuguese watch in the Middle East.

Jones left his horological genetic code in Schaffhausen when he created the ‘Jones calibre’ in 1868. This is being brought to life again in the special edition Portuguese F. A. Jones - a watch without parallel that is being launched in the region.

“Everything started at IWC in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in 1868 with F.A. Jones and the pocket watch movement named after him,” said IWC Brand Manager, Gianfranco D’Attis. “Today, these watches are truly rare collector’s items and have not been forgotten – even after 137 years,” he said.

Designed and developed by Jones, the Jones calibre movement came in several different models. What all these movements had in common was the three-quarter plate made of nickel silver, which, as the name suggests, covered about three quarters of the movement.

This construction was highly valued because, in stark contrast to movements with several bridges, it was known to be particularly stable with its bearings for the entire mechanism.

In the 1930s, it was IWC who brought a completely new type of watch into being, namely the wristwatch with a pocket watch movement. It is still called the Portuguese watch, because the demand for this ‘wrist-pocket watch’ with its significantly larger dimensions came from the Portuguese market.

Two of the most important traditions of IWC are joined in the F. A. Jones Portuguese - that of its founder and a degree of perfection unmatched by hardly any other manufacturer today in the construction of precision pocket watch movements.

F.A. Jones laid the cornerstone of IWC’s success with his product philosophy, which is being followed to this day. The new edition of his first movement, the one he started production with, is a tribute to the pioneer.

Leading impulses for the mechanical watch come from IWC. With its 390 employees, the company manufactures these sought-after pieces. Since the year 2000 IWC has belonged to the watch division of Richemont SA.

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