Evoking a Century of Heritage: Glashütte Original's Senator Chronograph Watches

In the quiet town of Glashütte, watchmakers a century ago were in the throes of a significant paradigm shift. Predominantly known for their precision pocket watches, they were now finding themselves faced with a growing preference for wristworn timepieces. This period of rapid transition eventually bestowed the world with Glashütte’s first modern wristwatch chronograph, the UROFA Caliber 59.

Glashütte Original, in reminiscence of the past, is paying homage to this transformative era with the introduction of their Senator Chronograph and Senator Chronograph Navigator watches. These contemporary masterpieces encapsulate a rich heritage of mechanical brilliance.

Amongst the major breakthroughs was the UROFA Caliber 58, modeled on the concept that wristwatches could indeed rival pocket watches in precision. Known as the ‘space-efficient movement’, the Caliber 58 ingeniously adapted construction principles of pocket watches to utilize limited space available inside a wristwatch, thereby ushering in a renewed era of watchmaking.

It set the stage for the development of the UROFA Caliber 59 in the early 1940s, a chronograph designed especially for pilots, incorporating resilience, precision and a revolutionary flyback mechanism. Withstanding temperatures ranging from -10°C to +40°C, maintaining an accuracy of -3/+12 seconds per day, and surviving 15 bar pressure for a minimum of 90 minutes, this cutting-edge creation solidified Glashütte’s place in the world of wristwatches.

Fast forward eight decades later, and the ingenious flyback function of the past finds itself reincarnated in the new Senator Chronograph and Senator Chronograph Navigator watches. This technical marvel serves as a tangible testament of Glashütte Original’s century-long commitment to horological excellence.