Glashütte Original

German watchmaking, not Swiss

Glashütte has its own conventions and they are worth knowing. Three-quarter plates instead of separate bridges, a swan-neck regulator, screwed gold chatons holding the jewels, and a hand-engraved balance cock on the higher references. It looks different through the caseback from anything Swiss, and that is the point.

Seventies, Senator and Pano

The Seventies takes the cushion case of the 1970s Spezimatic era and gives it a modern movement and, on many references, a dial made in the manufacture's own Pforzheim dial factory with graduated colour treatments. Senator is the classical round line, home to the Panorama Date, the large double-aperture date that is a house signature. The PanoMatic family moves to an asymmetric dial layout, offsetting the time and seconds against the Panorama Date.

Sizing and daily wear

Seventies references sit at 40mm in a cushion case that wears close to its number, and the integrated bracelet keeps it stable on the wrist. Senator dress models run 38mm to 42mm, with the Panorama Date adding visual weight to the dial rather than the case. PanoMatic references are asymmetric, so they read differently from either side of the wrist. Send us a wrist measurement and we will tell you how a given reference sits.

Buying and service

Because so much is made in-house, servicing is best done by someone who knows the calibre, and we check running condition before anything is listed. Our Glashütte Original inventory is small and moves quickly. Every piece is inspected in-house, box and papers are noted where present, price-on-request pieces are quoted on enquiry, and we buy and take Glashütte Original in trade.