Moritz Grossmann Central Seconds x Oliver Smith Jeweler Limited Edition debuts at Watch Week Aspen
Zach Blass- Moritz Grossmann x Oliver Smith Jeweler debut limited edition of five pieces at Watch Week Aspen.
- It’s a stainless steel Central Seconds that features a hand-engraved, untreated German silver dial.
- This release marks the third-ever co-branded Moritz Grossmann watch, priced at US$29,500.
The inaugural edition of Watch Week Aspen is currently underway and nearing its close – a new watch fair that was founded by Elizabeth Smith, the managing director of Oliver Smith Jeweler. With many brands launching the majority of their novelties in April at Watches and Wonders, and Geneva Watch Days associated with kicking off the next season of releases after a long and earned European summer, it’s an interesting move, to host a fair during this quieter period. Then again, Watch Week Aspen offers a ton of programming for visitors to be immersed in both the worlds of watches and Aspen food and culture. With watch fairs largely out of reach for most, the Aspen Watch Week ultimately brings a watch fair to a new and untapped region. While largely a program of panels and activities, Oliver Smith Jeweler has seized the moment to introduce a collaboration 18 months in the works: a Moritz Grossmann x Oliver Smith Jeweler Central Seconds Limited Edition.
Oliver Smith Jeweler recalls: “Highly valued for their rarity and craftsmanship, at the time, Moritz Grossmann was producing fewer than 500 watches. The first six pieces delivered to Oliver Smith Jeweler’s Scottsdale boutique were snapped up by discerning collectors without ever reaching the sales floor. Pursuing a collaboration for the Moritz Grossmann x Oliver Smith Jeweler Central Seconds was the next step. The piece was in development for around 18 months.” The collaboration notably joins two powerhouse women of the watch industry, Elizabeth Smith and Moritz Grossmann CEO Christine Hutter.
That being said, unless bound by traditional sizing standards, nothing about this watch is gendered. The resulting creation is monochromatic and stealthy, clean and crisp with an untreated German silver dial that introduces a sort of subtle brushed texture to its surface. Further heightening its seemingly simple, yet deceptively complex factor, the dial text and Roman hour numerals are engraved by hand. Even the Oliver Smith Jeweler co-branding at 6 o’clock is hand-engraved, and this Oliver Smith Jeweler Limited Edition marks the third-ever co-branded Moritz Grossmann watch.
The only small burst of colour on the dial is its handset that have been hand-fired to a unique brown-violet hue. One last note about the hands, they are also hand-made in-house by Moritz Grossmann. The high number of hand-made and hand-finished components in Moritz Grossmann watches is ultimately why horology-driven collectors have flocked to the German watchmaker.
Wondering what the pusher below the crown of the case does? A distinct feature, while the crown winds the stop-seconds movement and sets the time, the pusher actually starts the movement back up again. Most crowns are pulled out in steps to engage different complications – the hours and minutes, date, etc. For this watch, the crown both winds and sets the time in its default position, and then once the time is set you engage the pusher rather than pushing the crown in. This means less stress occurs on the crown stem over time and less dust can enter the watch.
Its stainless steel case is rather sizeable for a dress watch, 41mm in diameter and 12mm thick. However, the tradeoff is that you have a large, eye-capturing dial, and a German silver calibre, exhibited on the reverse side, that itself is 36mm in diameter. This also means you have a larger balance wheel and a larger balance cock that you can admire with its hand-engraved flourishes. Moritz Grossmann also notably opts for broader striped bridges – a distinguishing signature of its decoration style. A more subtle signature of Moritz Grossmann is that, like the central hours and minutes hands, its movement screws are hand-fired purple and the jewels in its movements are sapphires rather than rubies.
Personally, I find its dimensions to be larger than what I would like. But the ample real estate allows all the high-watchmaking details to be brought more in focus. All I know is that considering how quickly Oliver Smith Jeweler sold the first-ever six pieces they received from Moritz Grossmann, OSJ will have little trouble finding five buyers for this numbered edition. Especially since, as a steel model, this watch is on the more accessible end in price for the high-end independent.
Moritz Grossmann Central Seconds x Oliver Smith Jeweler Limited Edition pricing and availability
The Moritz Grossmann Central Seconds x Oliver Smith Jeweler is limited to five numbered pieces. Price: US$29,500
| Brand | Moritz Grossmann |
| Model | Central Seconds x Oliver Smith Jeweler LE |
| Case Dimensions | 41mm (D) x 12mm (T) |
| Case Material | Stainless steel |
| Water Resistance | 30 metres |
| Crystal(s) | Sapphire front and back |
| Dial | German silver, hand-engraved |
| Strap | Jean Rousseau brown alligator, steel pin buckle |
| Movement | Calibre 100.11, in-house, manual winding |
| Power Reserve | 42 hours |
| Functions | Hours, minutes, seconds |
| Availability | Five numbered pieces |
| Price | US$29,500 |