When we think of the defining decades of watchmaking in the 20th century, we think of the 1950s as the birth of the professional diver's watch, the 1960s as the era of the chronograph, and the 1970s as the dawn of luxury sports models in steel at the price of precious metal. It's best to forget the 1980s, which saw the rise of quartz, threatening the very existence of mechanical watches. But the 1990s arrived, bringing with them a true renaissance in watchmaking.
It was the decade when dormant brands began to rise from the ashes. When major luxury groups seized the marketing gold hidden behind old dial names. And when new independent brands emerged, manufacturing watches that combined tradition and modernity.
These are the foundations of what has become the 21st-century watch boom. But the question is: are we ready to revisit these formative years? We've already seen a few successful reboots—like IWC 's Ref 3705 pilot's chronograph—but the quintessential 1990s "look," with its soft-edged cases, small dials, and modern typography, continues to divide opinion. Oris 's recent revival of a little-known dual-time model from 1997 is the latest evidence that, cautiously, we may be about to witness a wave of 1990s throwbacks.
With that in mind, we've put together a list of models from this decade that are ripe for rediscovery.
01. Piaget Polo “ Key Largo ”, 1998
Piaget Polo Key Largo , 1998. Photo reproduced with the kind permission of Piaget
In the 1970s, any self-respecting playboy considered an ultra-thin Piaget wristwatch an essential piece of operational equipment. But the brand took a decidedly more robust approach 20 years later with the Key Largo , which sought to combine luxury and functionality.
The Key Largo was a 38mm diver's watch with a rotating bezel featuring a raised diving scale and finished in white gold for versions with a yellow gold case, or yellow gold for those made from white gold. A thick sapphire crystal and a bolted caseback helped ensure water resistance to 200 meters. The "tool watch" engineering didn't stop Piaget from adding a few extravagant touches, such as elegant fluted lugs and a cabochon at the end of the screw-down crown.
But perhaps the most striking element of the watch (which starts at CHF 19,600) is the matching gold bracelet, made up of a combination of fluted central bars mounted on a complex arrangement of links designed to provide strength and articulation.
The Key Largo was also available on a Cordura dive strap, avant-garde at the time, which could, if the owner wished, be embellished with a version of the strap model's fluted bars, designed to be donned when a more glamorous look was called for after a hard day's diving.
02. Breitling TwinSixty , 1997
Breitling Navitimer TwinSixty , 1997. Photo courtesy of Breitling
In the 1990s, Breitling produced some of the most coveted watches of any brand, the most sought-after being the multiple variations of its iconic pilot model, the Navitimer .
The basic version of the chronograph wasn't basic at all thanks to its famous (and patented) circular slide rule, but far more complicated Navitimers were also available, culminating in the perpetual calendar of the Montbrillant QP . Perhaps the most information-rich Navitimer , however, was the mind-boggling TwinSixty , which got its name from the fact that it had two minute hands, the first centrally positioned and working in tandem with the seconds hand, while the second was on a subsidiary dial at six o'clock.
Designed to display time measured over 60 minutes, it allowed instant reading and was a useful aviation aid that could be used, for example, to monitor flight times in relation to fuel reserves. Other features of the TwinSixty included an analog calendar, a secondary seconds dial, and a 24-hour display, all requiring no fewer than nine separate hands. The retail price in 1997 was CHF 4,500.
03. Zenith El Primero “ Rainbow ” Flyback , 1997
Zenith El Primero "Rainbow" Flyback , 1997. Photo courtesy of Zenith
Launched at the Basel fair in 1997, the Rainbow Flyback was the last in a series of Rainbow models that had been launched five years earlier and took their name not from the dial colors but from the famous J-class racing yacht that won the America's Cup in 1934.
It is, of course, purely coincidental that the name perfectly sums up the yellow, green, and blue colors of the "sectors" used on the Rainbow Flyback 's 30-minute counter, as well as the bright red highlights of the rotating bezel and minute hands. The eye-catching design was no gimmick, however - the high-contrast legibility is due to the fact that the watch was originally developed for the French Air Force, but the subsequent cancellation of the order led to the finished watches being offered to the public (at an initial retail price of just CHF 2,350).
As this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Rainbow Flyback , would it be excessive to hope for a revival?
04. IWC Schaffhausen GST Chronograph , 1997
IWC Schaffhausen GST Chronograph, 1997. Photo courtesy of IWC
When IWC Schaffhausen 's long-standing partnership with Porsche Design ended in the mid-1990s, the brand set about using some of the lessons learned from producing the avant-garde PD watches to develop its own sports models.
The first is the 1997 GST chronograph , the letters "GST" standing for "gold, steel, titanium" - the three metals in which the watch is available. It was also available in two case sizes (36.6 and 40 mm) and with two different movements (traditional automatic or hybrid "meca-quartz").
The GST Chronograph was a beautifully crafted watch with a premium integrated bracelet. And offering it in three materials made it accessible to a wide range of buyers, with prices starting at around CHF 2,350 and rising to over CHF 14,000.
The strength and depth of modern IWC chronographs—from the Pilot's to the Portugieser , there are 77 different chronographs in the range—make a revival unlikely. But the brand has shown that it is both in touch with its archives and has the courage to try new things, so who knows?
05. Vacheron Constantin Phidias , 1995
Vacheron Constantin Phidias , 1995. Photo reproduced with the kind permission of Vacheron Constantin
Vacheron Constantin 's flagship line in the mid-1990s was the Phidias collection, a range of classic models crafted from 18-karat gold and featuring matching integrated bracelets. The Phidias was, ostensibly, the successor to the 222 (relaunched this year, of course, to much fanfare)—but it bore no resemblance to it.
In chronograph form, the Phidias had a smooth, sloping bezel engraved with a tachymeter scale and a simple, uncluttered dial with a trio of counters. Slender, almost delicate-looking hands and baton hour markers occupied minimal space, while substantial "pump" pushers made using the chronograph functions convenient and positive.
But perhaps the most striking aspect of the Phidias chronograph is its integrated bracelet. Uniquely designed, it features a concave central section through which the cylindrical bars found at the center of each link pass. Phidias , in case you were wondering, was the chief artist to the Greek politician Pericles and was responsible for creating many of Athens' greatest sculptures and monuments.
06. Girard-Perregaux Vintage 1945 Chronograph, 1999
Girard-Perregaux Vintage 1945 Chronograph, 1999. Photo courtesy of Girard-Perregaux
Girard-Perregaux began revisiting its past as early as 1982 with a replica of its famous Tourbillon pocket watch with three gold bridges. But it wasn't until the 1990s that it began reviving some of its classic wristwatch models. The Trois Ponts d'Or movement was reduced to wrist size for the brand's bicentenary in 1991, after which the introduction of a new piece to the Vintage range became an annual tradition.
For 1999, Girard-Perregaux created a chronograph with a column-wheel automatic movement, housed in the already well-established square case of the 1945 line. Measuring 47 mm, the watch is beautifully finished, and its proportions are more wearable than its size would suggest. Cases in rose, yellow, or white gold were offered, all with a spherical crystal and water-resistant to 30 meters. Prices started at around CHF 9,700 for the yellow gold versions on a leather strap.
Text by Mr Simon de Burton
