(SOLD) Minerva 140th Anniversary Limited Edition Watch 140pcs Hand-Wind Stainless Steel w/Box & Paper Mens

Description

REMARKS: SOLD, PLEASE INQUIRE FOR FUTURE ORDER.

Rare and highly collectible Minerva 140 Anniversary Limited Edition Wristwatch interwined with history and really serves to remind collectors about the ‘original’ Minerva Watch Co. Most of the Minerva Watch Co. production from before 2000 when the Frey family sold the business to outsiders were considered ‘real’ Minerva watches with bloodline and heritage that truly represented the brand. Ever since the late 1980s when Swiss Watchmaking Industry was revived, Minerva under the ownership of the Frey family produced some of the most desirable and collectible timepieces that came from a true in-house manufacturer where the entire movements were made by Minerva Watch Co. This was a watchmaking capacity that few brands had in the Swiss Watchmaking Industry in the 1980-1990s. In-house movement watches were almost all reserved to the best and highest priced brands such as Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Jaeger-LeCoultre. Although Minerva Watch Co was a small watch manufacturer, it had survived the era of the quartz invasion of the 1970-1980s and retained its ability to fully produce watch movements from the ground up. And yet when the biggers brands were hyping about their ‘manufacturer’ status by upcharging their watches with in-house movement so high to put most watch buyers out-of-reach, Minerva Watch Co. chose to sell their watches mostly to dedicated collectors at much less premiums. This created a cult following for Minerva watches under Frey family ownership. In year 2000 the company was sold by long-time owners the Frey family and the brand name Minerva dissociated from its historical products. After the sale to outer conglomerates which eventually Richemont/Montblanc bought the Minerva brand, only the Minerva trademark was used without relation to the traditional product line. This particular Minerva 140th Anniversary Limited Edition was made as commemorative model in 1998 and only in 140 pieces. The Frey-owned Minerva Watch Co. had surplus pocket watch movements Cal.22 made from 1921-1942 to case into this special edition wristwatch. This was certainly the biggest Minerva Wristwatch made under Frey ownership at 43mm and one of the rarest. Design-wise it’s aesthetically very elegant yet highly fitting today’s larger watch trend. It also benefits from the fact that the pocket watch movement Cal.22 was used so that it is a full sized mechanism sitting robustly in the watch case. True to the sense of ‘in-house’ watches this watch basically has a decades old Minerva vintage movement inside.