1968 Omega 9ct Gold on Omega Bracelet 331.2541 Box & Papers
Ref: 331.2541
Specification
Lugs : 20mm (Integrated)
Condition : Pre-Owned
Box & Papers : Box & Papers
Case Material : 9ct Yellow Gold
Warranty : 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty
Points of Mention
This watch is sold with its original Omega box and papers. The watch comes paired with its integrated 9ct Yellow Gold Mesh bracelet with a signed jewellery clasp and will fit up to a 7-inch wrist. The watch is from November 1968 and is sold in worn, vintage condition, but overall very fair condition for its age, as you can see from the photographs. The watch comes with our 12-Months Non-Waterproof Warranty.
For more photos see here - https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1X-pAlTzXQVIxjXEtfwUyIfBtcX1PdXCO?usp=drive_link
4K YouTube video, skip to 23:04 - https://youtu.be/ko6_7hy3OPs
The Watch
Here we have a classic 1968 Omega on an Omega Bracelet 331.2541 with a 33.5mm 9ct Yellow Gold round case design, that gently curves over your wrist thanks to the integrated mesh bracelet securely attached to the base, for a jewellery-like aesthetic. A lug-to-lug length of 33.5mm and a thickness of 9mm ensures a comfortable fit. On the right side, a signed crown. A domed crystal sits above a silver sunburst dial, applied 9ct Yellow Gold slim baton indexes mark the hours, and slender Gold hands are complemented by a tapered sweeping seconds hand. Text is precisely printed with an applied Gold Omega motif at 12 o’clock. On the reverse, a 9ct Yellow Gold case back, inside a manually wound Omega Cal. 613, 17 jewels, 19,800 beats per hour, the movement was in production from 1967 until 1974. The watch comes paired with its integrated 9ct Yellow Gold Mesh bracelet with a signed jewellery clasp and also comes with its Omega presentation box and papers.
Personal Note
We are seeing a resurgence of integrated bracelet watches within the collecting community, and rightfully so! The value they offer is immense and the designs are often beautifully executed to a level not replicated in today's craftsmanship! This clean and crisp 9ct Gold Omega 331.2541 with its box and papers from 1968 is the perfect example of that, with how perfectly designed the integrated 9ct gold bracelet is and how that flows on the wrist, it truly is something to appreciate in the gold!
The Brand
They were formerly known as the La Generale Watch Co. in 1848 founded by Louis Brandt in La Chaux-de-Fonds. When he died in 1879, his sons carried on his dream. In 1880 they moved to 96 Rue Jakob-Stampfli where they remain today. The brothers produced their first mass-produced calibre, the Labrador In 1885. Just a few years later in 1892, they produced the first minute-repeater. In 1903 they renamed the company Omega until 1982 when they officially changed their name to Omega SA. During WW1 Omega watches were used as official timekeepers for the Royal Flying Corps and the US Army. In 1930, Omega and Tissot merged together to form Société Suisse pour l'Industrie Horlogère (SSIH) In 1931, another group was formed - Allgemeine Schweizerische Uhrenindustrie AG (ASUAG). Where SSIH was primarily French-speaking, ASUAG was founded by the more German-speaking members of the Swiss watch industry. In 1948 they introduced the first edition of one of its most symbolic watches: the Seamaster. Omega first introduced the Constellation in 1952. At the time it was Omega's flagship timepiece. The first models had a Cal. 354 bumper movement in them. Later in 1955, Omega introduced the Automatic Cal. 50x, followed in 1959 by the Cal.55x (no date) and 56x (date) versions. Many of the Constellations came with pie-pan dials, diamond indexes, and fancy lug configurations. All the gold Constellations of that time have the Observatory of Geneva's hand engraved on the back. The stainless steel and stainless steel/gold versions had a gold medallion on the back with the Observatory of Geneva. The eight stars above the Observatory stand for the many exploits of Omega in the world Chronometer competition. Celebrating the fact that all Constellations are Chronometer Certified. In 1962, when astronaut Wally Schirra wore a Speedmaster on his Mercury Sigma 7 Mission, making it the first Omega watch to enter space. After rigorous tests, NASA used Omega for all their Apollo missions including the 1969 Moon landing of Apollo 11. Today Omega is still an astronaut's first choice. In 1969, President Nixon famously said it was “too valuable” and turned down the first-ever all-gold Speedmaster Professional Deluxe. As a response to the ever-growing threat of electronic watches to the manufacturers of mechanical watches, Omega and many Swiss brands such as Rolex and Patek Philippe formed Centre Electronique Horologer (CEH). Prototypes began to appear in 1967 with their production starting in 1968. Then In 1972, Omega introduced the reference, 198.030, which included the Omega calibre 1250, a ‘tuning-fork electronic movement which was made under licence from Bulova. Later we saw a merger of SSIH and ASUAG into SMH, or Société de Microélectronique et d’Horlogerie. This merger took place in 1983. In 1992, the company acquired Blancpain, and in 1998 it officially rebranded itself from SMH to the Swatch Group. Then, in 1999, they purchased and integrated Breguet into the Swatch Group.