THE ESSENTIALS

MAKE: IWC
MODEL: PORTOFINO
YEAR: 1950
BOX/PAPERS: NO/NO
CASE DIAMETER: 35mm
CASE MATERIAL: STAINLESS STEEL
BRACELET MATERIAL: LEATHER
MOVEMENT: AUTOMATIC

Here at Falco, a watch will sometimes mysteriously disappear from the showroom after a “coming soon” post, only to reappear on Mr Jake Boreham’s Instagram as he travels the world… Thankfully, in this case, this lovely IWC from 1950 (yes—76 years old) has found its way back to us.

In Jake’s words: “What the xxxx has gone wrong in the last 70-odd years?” The sleek 35mm case, cream dial, applied square markers, elegant IWC signature, and those out-of-this-world lugs make this one of the prettiest watches we’ve had in recent weeks—especially at such an attractive price point.

The automatic calibre 85 inside is a product of Albert Pellaton’s genius during his time as IWC’s technical director. Many watchmakers would agree that IWC produced some of the most robust movements of the era, and this example is no exception, still running at +4 s/d, 269 amplitude, with a 0.4 ms beat error.

As we say here at Falco—if it’s good enough for Jake…