IWC Ingenieur Mission Earth
I’m a big fan of “icons” and this applies to my tastes in watches too. Last summer, I got a watch for my brother that is a veritable icon, the latest iteration of the Ingenieur. The IWC Ingenieur was first introduced in 1955 as a watch for engineers, as it incorporated a soft iron inner case that would help protect the movement from strong magnetic fields. Magnetic fields can harm a watch if the mainspring becomes magnetized, which causes a change in its beat frequency and therefore its ability to keep accurate time. In the 1950’s, with science and engineering advancing at a furious pace, society was obsessed with technology that would help them cope with the needs of a new technical lifestyle. Another (perhaps even more) famous anti-magnetic watch was the Rolex Milgauss, today a highly collectable model that was also marketed on its ability to resist magnetic fields.
Although this Ingenieur descended from the one in 1955, its design does not. The design of this Ingenieur can trace its lineage to the 1970s, where the Ingenieur was redesigned by none other than the recently deceased Gerald Genta, perhaps the most influential watch designer in the past century. Genta also designed the sport watches of the 1970s for the big 3: Patek Philippe Nautilus, Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, and the Vacheron Constantin Overseas. All these 70s sport watches share distinct Genta DNA: interplay of brushed and polished steel, integrated bracelets, and bezel dominant styling cues. The 70s Ingenieur had a screw on bezel to protect the front crystal with the 5 recesses matched to a bezel wrench.
This latest iteration of the ingenieur line, the Mission Earth, is 2mm larger than the previous model at a humungous 46mm (way too big for my taste). Big watches have been increasingly popular over the past decade or so, as fine watches have been making a comeback as statement fashion pieces.
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