Important Hobnail-Delirium: Eterna Tres Mince, Ultra-Thin

CHF 10,500

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WHY WE LOVE IT: There are just a few that important and special and rare watches in the second half of the 20th Century: a high-quality quartz-milestone creating the end-point in the dimension "miniaturization" and housed in an innovative and important case hand-made and -finished by Favre & Perret. And it is not a rare bird today but probably close to a piece unique in this condition.

Indeed, a rare and important watch: The model for the best-selling Swiss watch Swatch, for the automatic Audemars Piguet Ra-Tourbillon, the modern Piaget Altiplano Ultra and the Richard Mille RM-UP01 -- all apply the Delirium I-innovation of utilizing the case-back as movement main-plate. Besides this, it was the thinnest quartz-watch (less than 2mm inclusive crystal) and thus the winner in the race-to-miniaturization and in the early '80s one of the hottest and most expensive watches.

Sure, we can go into discussion, but I think I hold a good and excellent defendable position when I call it one of the most important watches of the last five decades. And it is not only important in a horological sense but it is also quite rare. The reason it is so rare is two-fold: it was very expensive and it was made just during a short time-span and in low quantities until it was replaced by the cheaper Delirium II.

With the model on a leather strap priced CHF12'900 in 1979 -- Eterna Delirium Tres Mince (sounds Tremens). This even rarer and more special variant with the solid gold bracelet, that is all decorated with the same hobnail- / guilloche-pattern as the case and dial, sold for a whopping CHF25'800 in 1979. And so it is safe to assume it was a rare watch back then already. And today with many smelted in the last four decades and in excellent running condition and that well preserved, it comes close to a piece unique. Yes, it was the hottest watch you could buy in 1979 -- if you could: on the edge of technology, super-precise and all hand-engraved by the case-maker-artisans at Favre & Perret -- yes, they made the Patek 3700 Nautilus Jumbo, the Patek 3770 Nautillipse and several other Pateks, too.

The movement was serviced by us and is working excellent and precise.