Eterna Eterna-Matic Date

Eterna is known by collectors for two reasons: Their contribution to the development of the automatic winding movement, and a man named Thor who wore one on his wrist while traversing the Pacific on a hand-made balsa wood raft.  

The latter is a tale for another time, but the brand’s part in the story of the modern automatic movement is nothing short of legendary. Their contribution to the technology was the implementation of five ball bearings used in attaching the rotor to the movement, helping reduce friction and maintain accuracy while being worn and used. The layout of these bearings, a pentagonal shape, was adopted by the brand as their logo in the 1950s, and remains to this day. The project name for their early movements? Eterna-Matic!

The range of vintage Eterna-Matic timepieces from the 1950s-1980s is about as diverse as one can imagine, with petite, ultra-thin gold dress pieces on one end of the spectrum, and large steel divers on the other. This particular Eterna-Matic is a thin, understated dress watch from the 1960s with a ‘quickset’ date function. 

Housed in a 34mm stainless steel case with a magnified acrylic crystal, a signed crown, and a polished bezel, it features a lovely sunburst silver radial dial with applied arrowhead indices, a dauphine handset, and a date window at 3:00. Powered by the famed Eterna-Matic automatic movement, it comes paired to a folded-link beads-of-rice bracelet with an unsigned blade clasp.

Despite its classic looks and svelte profile, this Eterna-Matic represents a brand that pushed the horological envelope.

For that and more, we are a fan.

Founded in La Chaux-de-Fonds by Georges Eberhard in 1887, Eberhard had by 1907 grown to be one of the largest watch companies in Switzerland. Literally — its headquarters on the Rue Leopold Robert spanned an entire block.
Some of the company’s earliest triumphs were in the realm of chronographs, including the debut of a double-pusher model in 1935 and a one with a rattrapante function in 1939. The eruption of World War II saw watches made by Eberhard, like many other manufactures, on the wrist of the world's militaries — a chronograph with a flyback complication was worn by officers in the Italian Navy. Civilian models from this period, with their distinctive 1940s stepped cases and short, curved pushers, are incredibly beautiful examples of contemporary design and rival those from the likes of Universal Genève and even Patek Philippe.
After the War, Eberhard expanded into wristwatch production geared toward practitioners of new sports such as SCUBA diving. Their Scafograph line, first released in 1958, featured 100, then 200 meters of water resistance. The Scafograf 300, which debuted in 1965, featured twisted lyre lugs similar to those of the Omega Seamaster 300, as well as a quirky asymmetrical date window and 300 meters of water resistance. The elegant Scafodat model of the 1960s, meanwhile, is not dissimilar in design to the Polerouter, though it was often equipped with a fine, matching flat-link bracelet and is much more difficult to find on the vintage market.
Though Eberhard exists today under new management and produces interesting, complicated watches, it’s their vintage wares from the 1940s through the late 1960s that best, to our mind, encapsulate the innovative design sensibilities of the original firm.

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Analog:Shift stands behind the authenticity of our products in perpetuity.

Condition

Since our pieces are vintage or pre-owned, please expect wear & patina from usage and age. Please read each item description and examine all product images.

Warranty

We back each Analog:Shift vintage timepiece with a one-year mechanical warranty from the date of purchase.

International Buyers

Please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.

All of our watches include complementary insured shipping within the 50 states.

Most of our products are on hand and will ship directly from our headquarters in New York City. In some cases, watches will be shipped directly from one of our authorized partners.

We generally ship our products via FedEx, fully insured, within 5 business days of purchase. An adult signature is required for receipt of all packages for insurance purposes. Expedited shipping is available at an additional cost. We are also happy to hand deliver your purchase in Manhattan or you may pick it up at our showroom.

Returns must be sent overnight or by priority international delivery, fully insured and paid for by the customer. A restocking fee may apply. Watches must be returned in the same condition as initially shipped.

We welcome international buyers, please contact us prior to purchase for additional details on shipping and payment options.