Category Archives: Glossary & Terms

The aperture of a watch refers to a small opening on a dial that reveals certain information, such as date, day, month, power reserve, or moon phase. Probably the most well known example is the Rolex cyclops which magnifies the … Read More

The movement of a mechanical or quartz watch can be disrupted if it comes near a strong magnetic field. Magnetism is common in a wide variety of electronic products, automobiles, and kitchen utilities, such as refrigerators. Most Swiss watches claim … Read More

If you’ve seen more than a handful of fine Swiss watch movements, chances are you’ve come across one fitted with screws which were colored blue. In case you wondered why, this is more for decoration than function. Although the bluing … Read More

Water resistance refers to the ability of a watch to withstand water from entering the case, as defined by the International Organization for Standardization. The ISO 2281 water-resistant standard prohibits the term waterproof from being used. In our experience, the … Read More

Guilloche, in the context of watches, is a form of decoration for watch dials, which give the dial depth and visual complexity. Guilloche is most often applied to silver dials via a decorative engraving technique highlighted by precise, intricate, and … Read More

The Geneva Seal was created in 1886 to identify timepieces built following Geneva’s traditional watchmaking standards To receive the coveted Geneva Seal, a watch movement must meet 12 strict quality criteria–ranging from materials to finishing–and it must be manufactured in … Read More

You’ve seen it advertised before: this [insert name of watch here] is shock resistant. But what does that really mean? According to the U.S. government, a watch is considered shock resistant if it can withstand an impact equal to that … Read More