TIME OF CHANGE
Times, they are a-changing, but sometimes it’s good to get stuck in the past
Is this a time of unusual change? It would appear so as we contemplate our computerdriven, automated future. But if you look at mechanical technology, it’s not so clear – planes remain pretty much the same, and most cars are powered by fossil fuel and driven by humans. As for watches, almost all the desirable ones are powered by clockwork. For an era of real change, the interwar years are hard to beat. Shaky wooden biplanes and exploding airships were replaced by fast metal monoplanes. Cars and boats were coming of age, many piloted by the unstoppable Sir Malcolm Campbell. He set his first land speed record in 1922 at 138mph. Within a decade, this had almost doubled, then in 1935, Campbell broke the 300mph barrier in his last land speed record before heading for the water, where progress was also supercharged. In 1919, an American boat had set a record of just over 70mph – by 1939 Campbell skipped his latest Bluebird across the tranquil waters of the Lake District at more than 140mph.
At the same time, the watch was transformed. Before WWI, even strapping a watch to your wrist was novel, then during the Twenties and Thirties, improvements were made in toughness, water resistance and reliability – a watch no longer had to be put in a pocket.
Campbell’s high-speed exploits made him an early watch ambassador. He wore a Rolex Oyster during his record attempts and sent a letter to Geneva thanking Rolex for making a watch that was “still going splendidly, notwithstanding rough usage”. Campbell featured in Rolex advertising, but refused to take a penny in payment.
Mechanical watches may have long since stopped being cutting-edge technology, but they are a multi-billion-dollar market, with companies spending a fortune developing and refining movements. Why? Because people like them. It’s the same reason people spend money on paintings, haircuts and sambuca – just because they fancy it.
The love of watches is about the perfection of an ancient technology that can run indefinitely without batteries or upgrades. A watch isn’t going to tell you any bad news, or try and sell you anything. A watch does not need to compete with modern technology. Whatever other crazy stuff happens in the world, a watch doesn’t want to take over your life, it just wants to make it a little bit better.