A Closer Look At The Alpina-Gruen 'Doctor’s Watch,' also known as 'The Secret Rolex.’
Today’s column is a special version of A Closer Look, as we welcome a new contributor, @_passion66_! We’ve been a fan of her photos and words in media outlets such as the New York Times and Hodinkee, and are proud to show her ideas here as well.
As many watch fans know, Hans Wilsdorf (the founder of Rolex) started a 'sister brand' near the turn of the last century by the name of Tudor. Some of those early watches shared movements with their Rolex brethren.
Still another bit of trivia is that the Rolex Daytona had not just one but two movements that also appeared inside other watch brands' timepieces. At first it was the mighty Valjoux 72 chronograph movement in the 60s and 70s, then it was the Zenith El Primero which powered the Daytona in the 1990s.
But did you know there was another 'secret Rolex?’
In the 1920s and '30s, the Gruen watch company was ubiquitous in the United States. They teamed with the Swiss company Alpina for a while to share distribution networks and source parts and labour for the former’s higher-end products. The partnership also produced what ended up being sort of a 'stealth' Rollie.
Gruen not only had an interest in Alpina, but also owned stock in a Swiss movement maker named Aegler. The other major stockholder was a Geneva-based watch company starting with the letter 'R.' Yep, Rolex also had a stake in the firm. It was Aegler that for a good while made the famous 'Rolex Prince' doctor’s watches.
Named for the large second-hand subdials on the watch face, these timepieces made it easier for people to check a pulse or measure anything to a fairly high degree of accuracy. This was no doubt also due to the Aegler caliber 877, which was one of the first-ever watch movements to be 'chronometer certified' without additional adjustments and tweaking by the watch brand before the trials.
It sounds crazy nowadays, but having a 3rd party make a similar watch for two brands wasn’t all that weird back then. Rolex sold mainly in Europe, while Gruen was doing almost all of its business in the States. Rolex of course was even then marketed as a luxury product, while Gruen made watches at a lot of different price points.
We noticed the Alpina-Gruen on the wrist of @_passion66_ on Instagram, and wanted to know a bit more about the piece and what drew her to such a watch. “Well, small-sized watches have a very special charm that big watches can’t reach! This Alpina-Gruen reminds me of the beauty of the early Rolex Bubblebacks. Delicate. Refined. Subtle.”
In a world where we see the same five or ten watches posted and re-posted daily on Instagram, this ethos of collecting is refreshing! It’s more about the design elements and overall vibe of the watch than the name on the dial. A search for underappreciated and unique pieces.
We had to ask her where she saw such a watch for the first time, and the answer did not surprise…it was “on the wrist of @mrenthusiast!”
(If you’re not familiar, @mrenthusiast is another interesting watch collector and all-around good guy who’s head of the @vivabastardo movement among other things. Worth following.)
She tracked down her example in Switzerland, and it seems to be both an uncommon example and in great condition. Real gilt dials (due to their construction) have a lot of depth to them, and usually look even better in person compared to in photos. “I’ve only ever seen two examples with black dials, and this one has both a steel and gold case! Pure porn!”
We asked her about boutiques, but she claimed the real spots in Switzerland for watches are the in-person watch fairs and flea markets! “They’re great fun.” “Swiss people, they hold onto everything and have the room to store it all.”
If there’s no watch fair or flea market in your area, you can hit up some second-hand online markets to try your luck; depending on your country of origin it might be something like Craigslist, Gumtree, or Ebay-Kleinanzeigen. Of course, like any other secondhand market…one must remember 'buyer beware,' but these spots are also where deals can be found!
Happy hunting, and thanks again for reading and for checking it the debut of @_passion66_ here on CC. Check her out both on Instagram, and in the future on this site for more information related to vintage watches, art, architecture, and pizza.
