This is our minimalist watch of the day, and I’d best start with two important facts. First, the yellow gold 125th Anniversary OMEGA Trésor cost $17,800. Second, the OMEGA De Ville variant no longer listed on the watchmaker’s website. So we have to address a simple question: is it worth the hunt? That depends on . . .
How much you love it and whether you have seventeen large burning a hole in your pocket. Otherwise, yes. Go, look, find, buy.
Obviously, I can’t make you fall in love. While a large number of watch collectors share my passion for a two- or three-hand minimalist timepiece, a larger number don’t. Most watch buyers at this level think more is more. The more complications (a.k.a., display doo-hickeys) the better.
For them, there’s plenty of high-end horology that will scratch that itch. The 39mm stainless steel Jaeger Le-Coultre Master Calendar above is an excellent choice, and it “only” costs $9,800. You could buy a perfectly wonderful minimalist watch with the remaining $7k.
By the same token, you can purchase a “standard” OMEGA De Ville Master Co-Axial and have $4k for a no-complications Tudor Black Bay 41 and a nice steak dinner with an important bottle of red. But again, love. And there’s a lot to love about 125th Anniversary Trésor.
The 125’s red enamel dial pays tribute to OMEGA’s brand colour; it’s astounding in both hue and finish. The color sets off the yellow gold case and markers in a way that no other color has or can. Accentuated by a burgundy leather strap with tone-on-tone stitching, the watch has a vintage personality that transcends time. Literally.
Flip the case around, and OMG OMEGA.
I’m sure there are those who see the Omega lettering and jumbo-sized logo as over-the-top. Florid. Cartoonish. Circus-like? Something tacky. And the way the number two impinges on the word Omega seems a bit weird, as does the way the designers fit the words “years” on the side.
FWIW I think it’s bold and bad-ass, especially with the red enamel in-fill. The decorative damaskeening engraving ringing the case back is perfection itself. And if something special happened in your life in 2019 — as it did in Omega’s — that’s a bonus.
If you share my enthusiasm for this in-your-face artwork, simple! Don’t turn the watch over. Just savor that dial and let the hidden OMEGA Master Chronometer Calibre 8929 – based on the brand’s first manual-winding Master Chronometer movement — do its thing.
That’s assuming you can find one. Hong Kong Tattler reports there are some 125th Anniversary Trésors left in the embattled city’s dealer network. And none that I can find online or by ringing around U.S. dealers. Still, the hunt is half the fun, right?