1970s IWC Yacht Club in solid 18kt yellow gold and its original bracelet

Founded in 1868, IWC is a Swiss company founded by Florentine Ariosto Jones, an American watchmaker motivated by the combination of Swiss knowledge and American technology. Today, IWC is recognized as one of the great names in the industry, renowned for its passion, innovative solutions and technical ingenuity.

Since then, IWC has succeeded in becoming one of the world’s top ten brands in the luxury watch segment, creating masterpieces of fine watchmaking, combining high precision and masculine design. It has produced some of the most desirable watches, such as the Portugieser, Portofino, Aquatimer, Ingenieur, De Luxe and pilot’s watches.

Launched just before the quartz crisis in the early 1970s, the reference 811 was an immediate success. The IWC Yacht Club is one of the last representations of the “golden age” of mechanical watchmaking, before it suffered from the arrival of quartz.

Because of its aesthetic qualities, the watch inspired the entire Club line of the 1970s, with the Polo Club, Golf Club… It is attributed a very attractive classy and sporty look with a readable dial and fine applied gold and black indexes & hands.

Mechanically, IWC spent 15 years developing the 85-movement family, which included the “Pellaton” winding system. Already featured in an IWC de Luxe that you can see on the site. The Pellaton system, designed by Albert Pellaton of IWC, offered superior shock resistance and durability to all known and recognized calibers of the period.

A cool and clean automatic watch that has the chance to combine the sophistication of a simple design with the mechanical mastery of IWC. The watch comes with its original and very long 18kt gold bracelet, a feat to find them together and in good condition.