Ulysse Nardin Watch Introduction
Ulysse Nardin watches are marine-inspired, high-accuracy mechanical watches. Even though it’s one of the world’s oldest watchmakers, it is a company with great momentum that is increasingly contemporary. Epitomized by the shark, Ulysse Nardin is a disruptive brand that appeals to an adventurous spirit and a curious outlook that embraces designs and technology beyond the Swiss norm.
Ulysse Nardin’s First 137 Years
Ulysse Nardin founded his eponymous company in 1846 at the young age of 23. The company was formed in Le Locle, Switzerland. After moving within the village several times, it settled on the location that would serve as the company’s headquarters for more than 150 years. Nardin was obsessed with accuracy. While Le Locle was far from the sea, he recognized the opportunity in building marine chronometers since trade was largely dependent on ocean routes.
Before GPS, marine chronometers were an essential tool for navigating the oceans. These timepieces required peak accuracy, shock resistance and reliability. From its earliest days, Ulysse Nardin produced watches to meet the standard. In 1874, the company received the first of many marine chronometer certifications from the Neuchâtel Observatory and set its course to become one of the world’s most successful producers of the specialty. According to the Observatory’s records, 95% of the 4,324 marine chronometer certificates ever issued were awarded to Ulysse Nardin.
Nardin died two years after receiving the Neuchâtel certification. His son Paul-David Nardin took over the business, which would remain under family control until 1983. Ulysse Nardin continued producing marine chronometers and by 1976 had produced more than 10,000 of these precision tools. Among its most notable achievements was a contract with the US Navy in 1905 after President Teddy Roosevelt allowed companies outside of the US to supply the military. The contract provided tremendous credibility, which Ulysse Nardin leveraged to expand its business. In 2018, the company released the limited-edition Semper Fortis (1183-320LE) chronometer to commemorate the relationship.
As a precision mechanical watchmaker, the quartz revolution wreaked havoc on the company. Quartz movements offered 100 times greater accuracy than its best chronometers. Ulysse Nardin saw a rapid decline in business in the 1970s as quartz technology scaled. Like many Swiss firms, the company faced a grim reality as it contracted operations and explored survival options. In 1983, an investment group led by Rolf Schnyder acquired Ulysse Nardin and began the process of revitalizing the brand.
The Modern Era
The new ownership group saw the opportunity to build on Ulysse Nardin’s manufacturing prowess to create a disruptive brand in an industry built on tradition. Schnyder assembled a team that included watchmaker and inventor Dr. Ludwig Oechslin. Together they developed and launched a series of Ulysse Nardin watches that challenged the status quo and positioned the company as an innovator in both design and technology. The first watch they produced — the Astrolabium Galileo Galilei — was inspired by Oechslin’s astrolabe clock. It was an incredibly complex timepiece that indicated the position of the sun, moon and stars as well as a moon phase and solar/lunar eclipse indicator. The 1989 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records recognized the watch as the most complex ever built. Two more astronomical watches, the Planetarium Copernicus and Tellurium Johannes Kepler, were produced to create the Ulysse Nardin Trilogy of Time Collection.
Minute repeaters, GMT and an award-winning GMT Perpetual followed, but all were overshadowed when the Freak was introduced in 2001. Unlike any other watch ever produced, the Freak has no hands, crown or traditional dial. Instead, the tourbillon function is the hands as the entire assembly rotates on a pivot point that pierces the sapphire crystal. The Freak’s bespoke escapement was the first to use silicone components. It was engineered with four contact points instead of the usual two to keep the balance wheel spinning. Instead of a crown, a small plaque at 6 o’clock releases the bezel so that it can be turned to adjust the time. Winding the watch is accomplished by turning the caseback, which reveals a massive mainspring at the heart of the Freak’s seven-day power reserve. This unique design won the Watch of the Year Award in 2002. Ulysse Nardin recently released new variants, including the automatic Freak Vision and the crown-controlled Freak X. Other innovations and models of note include:
- A consistent stream of new movements released at a rate of roughly four ground-up calibres per year. Among the highlights are its DIAMonSil escapements, which combine Silicium and man-made diamond to create an extremely strong, lightweight mechanism that requires no lubrication.
- The Marine Collection, with watches from vintage-styled chronometers in steel and gold to audacious designs that incorporate nautical elements on the dial
- The Diver Collection for men and women, which includes traditional divers, a deepwater 1,000-meter edition and the Diver X Limited Edition
- The Skeletonized Executive Collection, with architectural lines and bold designs — especially interesting is the seemingly free-floating mechanism on the $100,000 Tourbillon Free Wheel
- The Classico Series, which includes elegant dress watches along with a series of 10 watches featuring colorful underwater erotic images on the dial designed by comic book artist Milo Manara
Ulysse Nardin Value
Entry-level Ulysse Nardin watches start at roughly $6,000, and the most complicated and highly decorated models sell for more than $1 million. In addition to steel, the company builds watches in gold, platinum, copper, titanium and even a case crafted from sapphire. The resale market is rich with options. They range from highly complicated preowned models in precious metal selling for $10,000-$20,000 to more affordable vintage Ulysse Nardin examples for less than $1,000. There is a great selection of options drawn from the very wearable Marine and Diver collections in the $2,500-$5,000 range. This represents an excellent value for a timepiece with the technology and heritage of Ulysse Nardin.