After the 2017 launch of the Orion 38 “De Stijl” – one of the most unusual and intriguing Nomos watches to date – Dutch retailer Ace Jewelers has unveiled the fruit of its third collaboration, the Zürich Weltzeit Amsterdam.

Limited to just 25 pieces, the watch is a variation of the Nomos travel watch, distinguished by a handful of distinct but restrained tweaks. Previously available only with a blue or white dial, the Amsterdam edition features white indices and text, along with red accents on a stark, matte black dial. Appreciably, its stark, no-nonsense colour palette comes at a time when Nomos is increasingly relying on pastel-coloured dials.

The watch features several nods to the Dutch city, with “Amsterdam” replacing Berlin on the city ring and highlighted in red, while home time is indicated at three o’clock by the flag of Ace Jeweler’s hometown of Amsterdam, made up of three Saint Andrew’s crosses.

The rest of the watch is otherwise identical to the standard version. Its steel case measures 39.9mm wide and 10.85mm high, featuring angled, elongated lugs that are similar to the Orion’s and rather distinct from all the other collections. All surfaces of the case are polished, offering a great contrast to the matte dial.

A pusher at two o’clock advances the local time display in one-hour steps while a recessed pusher at eight o’clock sets the home time.

Visible through the sapphire case back, the watch is powered by the in-house automatic DUW 5201 movement, with a 42-hour power reserve. Most notably, it is equipped with an in-house escapement, balance wheel and hairspring, known collectively as the “Swing System”. It is also attractively finished with Glashütte ribbing, perlage and blued steel screws.

Key facts and price

Zürich Weltzeit Amsterdam Ace Jewelers Edition
Ref. 805.S21

Diameter: 39.9mm
Height: 10.85mm
Material: Stainless steel
Water resistance: 50m

Movement: DUW 5201
Functions: Local time and home time
Winding: Automatic

Frequency: 21,600bph, or 3Hz
Power reserve: 42 hours

Strap: Horween Shell Cordovan leather

Availability: Exclusively at Ace Jeweler boutiques and online
Price: €4,620, including 20% VAT

For more information, visit Acejewelers.com

Returning for the fifth time, Dubai Watch Week (DWW) will take place from November 20-24, once again at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a sprawling complex of offices, shops, restaurants, and three hotels, which is entirely self contained, making a visit to DWW easy to plan.

As is tradition, the event includes exhibitions, watchmaking classes, and talks. Amongst the speakers will be Masayuki Hirota, an eminent Japanese watch journalist and the editor of Chronos Japan, who will be speaking about Grand Seiko.

And DWW once again includes the Horology Forum, a series of panel discussions that take place daily. Panellists this year include journalists like Ariel Adams of aBlogtoWatch, watchmakers like Philippe Dufour and Stephen Forsey; brand chiefs including Karl-Friedrich Scheufele of Chopard, Jean-Claude Biver of LVMH, and Benoit Minitiens of Ressence; as well as watch collectors like San Francisco-based Jeffrey Kingston, and Aldis Hodge, an American actor who is also a jury member of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Geneve.

And naturally the speakers’ roster also includes prominent local personalities, including collector Hamdan Al Hudaidi and Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi, chief commercial officer of Seddiqi Holding, the parent company of DWW’s organiser.

A panel session at DWW 2018

And some newcomers

Rolex is taking part for the first time in DWW, and bringing along with it the Oyster Perpetual Submariner exhibition, a series of displays within a showcase designed like an enormous Oyster watch bracelet.

The Submariner exhibition, captured in the Rolex headquarters in Geneva. Photo – Rolex

The exhibition details the history and development of the trademark Rolex dive watch. Photo – Rolex

And another newcomer is Watchbox, the pre-owned watch specialist that’s a sister company of American authorised retailer Govberg Jewelers, whose chief executive Danny Govberg will be amongst the panellists at the Horology Forum. Watchbox recently inaugurated a joint venture with Seddiqi to establish a pre-owned watch operation in Dubai, as a complement to Seddiqi’s primary watch retail business.

The planned Watchbox lounge at DWW 2019. Photo – Dubai Watch Week

DWW will also be the launch platform for several regional-exclusive limited editions. In past years, the range included a one-off Urwerk UR-210, TAG Heuer Autavia and IWC Portugieser Chronograph.

For event details and registration, visit Dubaiwatchweek.com.