IWC Silver Watches Collection, IWC Silver Watch

IWC Aquatimer Automatic (IW3290-02)

A little smaller than some of the other watches I own. It looks really good and sleek.

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by sally burnham, From Luxembourg Luxembourg

IWC Aquatimer 2000 (IW3538-03)

very good IWC watch, thank you

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by OOVY PTY LTD, From Portugal Funchal - Madeira

IWC Portofino Hand Wound Eight Days Silver Dial Men's Watch IW510103

I got this for Christmas and LOVE it! Great value for what you get. I like the band as well... it is fashionable yet comfortable. I have already had a ton of compliments on this watch.

---- [Rating: 5 / 5 stars]

Review by Chloe Wotherspoon, From The Netherlands Groningen

It is - once again - to Gerald Genta that we owe the brilliant design of the Ingenieur watch as we now know it. Its taut, virile and technical lines were to powerfully affirm the identity of a collection that has nonetheless had a turbulent history. For while the Ingenieur appears to have established itself as a fixture in the IWC collections, that has not always been the case. A few milestone dates are enough to highlight its adventurous path, having been first created in 1955, propelled to fame in 1975 by Genta's design, progressively eclipsed during the quartz wave and then spectacularly revived in 2005. With such a string of "5s" in its chronology, 2015 is the perfect time to celebrate a model that is still very much on the scene despite the twists and turns of history.

Built for bright sparks
Its audience - composed of scientists, researchers and engineers - has remained unchanged. The model was developed in the 1950s with such individuals in mind. Sturdy, antimagnetic, water-resistant and accurate, it was intended to serve as a firm ally of those who measure and explore the world.

Right from the start, the Ingenieur was a distillation of high-tech features. Its Faraday cage was capable of protecting the movement against magnetic fields of up to 80,000 A/m (amperes per metre). That was 10 times the minimum antimagnetic requirement of the time for Swiss watches! However, watch design in 1955 was not as bold as it would become in the following decades. The highly technical Ingenieur was presented in a very traditional design that somewhat blurred its positioning. And that was exactly where Genta would step in.

A barrel and screws
Before turning his hand to the Ingenieur, Genta had already designed the Royal Oak three years earlier, in 1972. IWC was content to draw inspiration from the latter while asserting its own style codes. The Ingenieur was the perfect candidate for Genta, as a model that was literally begging to express the full force of its technical nature.

Genta gave it a more tonneau-like (barrel) shape, complete with five visible screws designed to open the watch, an engine-turned motif and a nickname that would stick because of its 40 mm size that was very substantial at the time: Jumbo. The two latter features directly evoke the Royal Oak Jumbo and its pattern that was later dubbed "tapisserie".

Relative failures and relaunch attempts
It had what it took to guarantee its success, and yet nothing much happened: the Ingenieur designed by Genta was a commercial failure and only 1,000 were produced. With hindsight, this failure is attributed to the tidal wave of quartz watches. Perhaps the model was simply too far ahead of its time, because these extremely rare collector's timepieces currently sell for more than CHF 10,000.

Between the late 1970s and early 1980s, IWC attempted to jolt the Ingenieur out of its rut. Two models were entrusted with this daunting mission: a first one with a quartz movement that was supposed to be more in tune with the trend of the times; and then, a few years later, a version equipped with an externally sourced ETA 2892 movement - representing an unusual industrial approach for IWC that boasts a large number of in-house calibres including those developed by its technical director since 1944, the brilliant James Pellaton.

Back to roots
Largely ignored by the public at large, the Ingenieur then returned to its initial, purely technical territory. IWC began cooperating with armed forces in developing extreme models, notably capable of withstanding magnetic fields of 500 a/m. The result was a moderate success (3,000 were sold), but was in fact truly noteworthy for having pushed antimagnetic boundaries to an unprecedented level. In terms of precision, the other b suit of the Ingenieur, IWC sourced from LMH (Jaeger-LeCoultre) a hybrid MecaQuartz model featuring a quartz movement, a mechanical chronograph and an alarm function.

It was not until 2005 that IWC reprised the Ingenieur that had been fading into the background. By that time, men were looking for four features in a watch - all of which were firmly embedded in the genes of the original Ingenieur: technical, accurate watchmaking with a good story to tell and a design featuring a deliberately vintage touch. The collection appeared in large versions, attired in titanium or ceramics and boldly fitted with a rubber strap. It even found its way into the racing paddocks of the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team. In the same pioneering spirit of precision, IWC equipped it with a Constant-Force Tourbillon escapement. And now, in a few weeks' time, the brand will doubtless be unveiling the future of this collection that is now entering the second decade of its renaissance.

For the seventh consecutive year, IWC Schaffhausen demonstrates its commitment to philanthropy and skills in beautifully designed timepieces by releasing a limited special edition in aid of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. This year the Swiss manufacturer recreates a watchmaking legend, the Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph, resplendent in the distinctive Laureus blue, a colour which has come to signify hope in a better future for disadvantaged children the world over.

"As a successful global business in the luxury goods sector, it is second nature to us to accept our social responsibility and support people who have to overcome the most difficult circumstances in life," explains IWC CEO Georges Kern. The motivation for the Schaffhausen manufacturer's social commitment is clear: "The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation is a cause dear to our hearts, because its sports projects open prospects for young people all over the world." Since 2005 IWC Schaffhausen has been a driving force behind Laureus, and the company's annual release of an exclusive special edition in aid of the Foundation has become a tradition. This is the third time that a model in the Portuguese watch family has appeared in gleaming Laureus blue.

Striking a balance between functionalism and elegance
Drawing on the Portuguese Yacht Club Automatic - the most successful IWC watch of the 1960s and 1970s - the new Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph Edition "Laureus Sport for Good Foundation" combines sporting elegance with the best in technical features. The watch comes with the trusty IWC-manufactured 89361 calibre and is water- resistant to 6 bar. With its screw-in crown and crown protection, it is guaranteed not to leave its owner in the lurch, even when sailing on the high seas. The chronograph's combined hour and minute counter allows up to 12 hours of aggregate timing. As a result, the flyback function will return to zero at any time the chronograph is in use, ensuring timing can begin again immediately if halted. The flange for seconds and fractions of seconds allows this precision- focused nautical instrument to record cumulative time extremely accurately. The watch also displays the date and small seconds.

But this is not just a functional watch. An appealing feature of the Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph Edition " Laureus Sport for Good Foundation", available in a limited edition of 1,000 pieces, is its classic design. The signal-red stopwatch hand stands out perfectly from the blue dial, which together with the stainless-steel case gives the watch that distinctive Laureus look. The black rubber strap with folding clasp reinforces the watch's sporting elegance and makes it as comfortable as possible to wear.
 

Back engraving with symbolic power
A particular highlight of the Portuguese Yacht Club Chronograph Edition "Laureus Sport for Good Foundation" is a poignant engraving on the back of the timepiece, based on a drawing by 12-year-old Hakkini Hasanga Sandumal De Silva. It serves as a reminder that part of the proceeds resulting from the sale of the watch go to help needy children all over the world. The boy from Sri Lanka had entered the global children's drawing competition held annually by IWC Schaffhausen at the Laureus Foundation's projects. The judges were impressed with Hakkini's interpretation of the theme "Time to move". In keeping with the Olympic spirit, his illustration displays a sprinter, with other competitors in the background, surrounded by cheering fans. The Olympic flame, ever a symbol of peace and hope, blazes up over the scene. There could be no better symbol of the motto of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation: "sport has the power to change the world".

Social change through sports projects
Hakkini is the third child from the Seenigama Sport for Life project in Sri Lanka to win the drawing competition. The country has endured much suffering in the last 10 years - from the horrific path of destruction left by the tsunami in December 2004, to the civil war still fresh in the mind of the population 3 years later. Here the project has made an important contribution in helping to rebuild lives and supports over 1,400 children and young people by bringing sport into their daily activity. By introducing them to cricket, volleyball, swimming, netball and badminton, the children find a welcome diversion from their harsh everyday existence and at the same time regain a zest for life. All sports programmes are also designed to support participants' mental and physical health and assist in mapping out their future prospects.

In addition to Seenigama Sport for Life in Sri Lanka, the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation supports over 140 programmes worldwide. It has transformed the lives of up to 1.5 million children and young people to date. The Foundation relentlessly draws attention to social injustices with the help of the Laureus World Sports Academy, an association of sporting legends who collectively boast over 100 Olympic medals, 100 world championship titles and 200 world records to their credit. The Foundation also presents the annual Laureus World Sports Awards, which place its mission firmly in the public spotlight.
"It's a brilliant idea to use sport as an instrument of social change. This is a universal language which every human being understands, regardless of origin or education," is how Georges Kern summarizes the Laureus recipe for success. So firm is Georges Kern's faith in the power of sport that IWC Schaffhausen founded the Laureus Foundation Switzerland in 2007 and has been a driving force behind its projects so far. The eight other national branches of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation in Argentina, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, South Africa and the USA can also count on the support of the tradition-steeped watch manufacturer from Schaffhausen. The dedicated work of the Laureus Foundation helps children worldwide who have fallen victim to poverty, homelessness, war, violence, discrimination, drug addiction, racism or HIV/Aids. "We are firm believers in the approach of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and proud to be able to support it as a global partner," concludes Georges Kern.

If you plan to stay ahead of the pack, you need state-of-the-art technology. And that's why the pilots at the NAS base in Fallon in the Nevada desert are trained in the very latest jets - the Top Guns. Any Haute Horlogerie manufacturer planning to remain in the top flight needs to upgrade on a regular basis. IWC Schaffhausen, for instance, has equipped its new Pilot's Watch Chronograph TOP GUN (Ref. 388001) with the in-house 89365 calibre, which boosts the watch's power reserve from 44 to a useful 68 hours compared with its predecessor. A soft-iron inner case protects the precision mechanism against magnetic fields.

The dial is in the classical cockpit design, all the way down to the date display, which resembles an altimeter. Luminescent white hands and indices guarantee outstanding legibility, even when visibility is far from perfect. The central chronograph hand, whose signal red counterpoise brings to mind the silhouette of a jet, shows recorded times in seconds, while the small white hand in the subdial at "12 o'clock" shows the number of elapsed minutes. Thanks to the integrated flyback function, simply pushing the reset button causes the stopwatch hand to return to zero and instantly starts recording a new time. The small red hacking seconds rotating at "6 o'clock" indicates that the watch is running normally. It can be stopped whenever necessary for synchronization purposes.
The high-tech materials used in the Pilot's Watch Chronograph TOP GUN are of the very highest quality. The ceramic case, enlarged by 2 millimetres to 46, is water-resistant to 6 bar, light and extremely skin-friendly. The push-buttons and crown are made of titanium. With an antireflective coating on both sides, the convex sapphire glass (grade 9 on Mohs' hardness scale) is highly scratch-resistant and secured against sudden drops in pressure in the cockpit.

Heading up IWC's Pilot's Watches With identical features, the Pilot's Watch Chronograph TOP GUN Miramar (Ref. 388002) references the original home of Top Gun: Miramar in California. The US Navy Fighter Weapons School was situated there from 1969 to 1996, when it was relocated to Fallon in Nevada. The Top Gun engraving on the titanium case back is a tribute to a select elite and an indication that this is the technological highlight of IWC's Pilot's Watch family. The Pilot's Watch Chronograph TOP GUN Miramar features the military design. The ceramic case owes its shimmering metallic grey, which is paired with a dial in matte anthracite, to the elaborately finished surfacing. The hands and chapter ring in beige, together with the rugged green textile strap, reinforce the desired look.
One unusual feature is the separate depiction of the minutes on the external ring and the hours on a smaller inner ring. This is derived from an original feature of deck watches in the 1930s and 1940s, when the precise time in minutes and seconds was essential for determining the aircraft's position. The flyback is another function that dates from that era of aviation. It allows the chronograph to "delete" an ongoing time measurement and to start a new one without an intermediate stop. This was vital if the pilot was timing certain curved radii using his watch, or if a manoeuvre had to be abandoned and a new one started immediately.

It devotes itself to sport and the improvement of society through sport. Every year, the very best sportsmen and sportswomen in the world are honoured at the Laureus World Sports Awards. Its work also includes supporting underprivileged young people in over 60 community projects on every continent through the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. Every one of those projects utilises sport as the vehicle for social change.
Laureus World Sports Academy
At the heart of Laureus is the Laureus World Sports Academy, a unique association of the greatest sporting legends. The Academy members, who between them account for 100 Olympic medals, about half of them gold, 100 world titles and 200 world records, share a belief in the power of sport to break down barriers, bring people together and to improve the lives of young people around the world.
The Laureus World Sports Academy is the ultimate sports jury, voting each year to decide the winners of the Laureus World Sports Awards and acting as global ambassadors for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, volunteering their time to visit projects in order to draw attention to the problems afflicting society today.
Laureus Sport for Good Foundation
The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation supports community projects in places of deprivation throughout the world. Since 2000 the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation has funded and promoted initiatives worldwide which use the power of sport to tackle pressing social issues. From the ability to overcome the battle against crime and drugs, to breaking down the barriers of wartorn nations and to regenerate forgotten communities, sport stands alone as a universal language which can be used to educate and to overcome adversity. The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation supports over 60 projects worldwide and since its inception has improved the lives of almost 150,000 children.
Examples of projects include Fight With Insight in Johannesburg, South Africa, a boxing project for young offenders, which aims to channel their aggression into more positive areas. The Magic Bus Sports Programme, in Mumbai, India, which creates "classrooms without walls", and offers sports activities, education, food and healthcare to children who have no choice but to live on the streets, and in some cases those who have been forced into prostitution. In Israel/Palestine, the project Training for Peace, brings young people together through sport from two divided communities.
In Sarajevo, Bosnia, Spirit of Soccer teaches young people to be aware of the risks of 500,000 land mines still remaining in their communities, and in Richmond, Virginia, American teenagers play in a Midnight Basketball League which has helped to tackle drug and crime problems, taking the kids off the street and into the basketball courts. Diverse projects, yet all making a deep impact on their respective communities. Many of the projects are tackling the root of such problems namely drug addiction, poverty, criminality and even AIDS, through sport.
Underprivileged children rub shoulders with the legends of sport
The members of the Laureus World Sports Academy regularly visit Foundation projects, bringing much needed publicity and demonstrating to the participants and their leaders that their work has the backing of their communities and the outside world. The Academy aims to promote all that is positive and worthwhile in sport, and to reinforce the work of all those who stand up for fair play, honest effort and the joy of taking part.
Young people who meet Edwin Moses, Mark Spitz, Bobby Charlton, Martina Navratilova or Boris Becker are left with a b, positive impression. These great sporting legends, who simply want to give something back to society in return for everything that sport has given to them, become great role models for the young people. That is why every Academy member is committed to donating his or her time each year to visit projects. Laureus Academy Chairman Edwin Moses explained: "The Laureus World Sports Awards are a way of drawing the world's attention to what really matters - our work with communities with the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. The greatest thing we can do is change lives for the better through sport."
Eight National Laureus Foundations
Laureus thinks globally and acts locally. This strategy means that the global Laureus Sport for Good Foundation is also supported by several National Sport for Good Foundations. The National Sport for Good Foundations are in Argentina, France, Germany, Italy, USA, South Africa, Spain and in Switzerland. Georges Kern, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen, insists that the company bears a social responsibility: "The privileged people on this planet - and we are among them - must do something to help those who are socially, physically or economically disadvantaged. We as a company bear a social responsibility."
Working alongside the Laureus Academy members are also a large number of Laureus Friends and Ambassadors, a group which includes many current world-class sportsmen and sportswomen who are committed to working to help underprivileged young people within their own countries.
The Laureus World Sports Awards
The Laureus World Sports Awards is considered to be the highest international accolade of its kind. The annual selection of the winners covers all sporting disciplines in a variety of categories. With their superb sporting credentials, who could be better qualified to make the annual selection than the Academy members? The Academy members vote by secret ballot for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year, Laureus World Team of the Year, Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year, and Laureus World Comeback of the Year, the nominations for which are made by the Laureus Media Selection Panel, an elite group of the world's most influential sports editors, sports journalists and broadcasters from 125 countries. Academy members also vote for two other categories: Laureus World Alternative Sportsperson of the Year respectively Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year and Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability. In addition, the Academy presents, at its discretion, the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award, the Laureus Sport for Good Award and the Laureus Spirit of Sport Award.
The Chairman of the Laureus World Sports Academy is American athletics legend Edwin Moses, the former double Olympic 400 metres hurdles champion, supported by Vice Chaipersons, Tanni Grey-Thompson from the UK, wheelchair racer and 11 time gold medal-winner, and Boris Becker, from Germany, the tennis legend and three-time Wimbledon champion.

Time for social responsibility

Laureus and IWC

Watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen has joined forces with Laureus, an organisation that combines sport and social commitment at the very highest level. Every year Laureus presents the Laureus World Sports Awards to the best sportsmen and sportswomen from all over the globe, while the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation uses sport as a means of helping to give children and young people a better future.
The man at the helm of IWC Schaffhausen has no fears for the future of the Swiss watchmaking company. "The IWC brand is more successful today than ever before", says CEO Georges Kern. And now the company is using its strength to empower young people in critical social situations. Since 2005, IWC Schaffhausen has been one of the driving forces behind Laureus, an organisation established in 1999 by two successful international companies, Daimler Chrysler (today Daimler) and Richemont. Daimler represented by its Mercedes-Benz brand, while Richemont, which unites numerous well-known brands in the watch, jewellery and writing instrument industries, selected IWC Schaffhausen as its representative. The watch manufacturer has been making high-quality timepieces since 1868 under the motto "Probus Scafusia", good, solid craftsmanship from Schaffhausen. Sportive watches are one of IWC's most important segments besides horological specialities.
Laureus has two central missions: the first of these is its annual Laureus World Sports Awards, given to the world's most outstanding sports performers; the second is the support offered by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation to projects all over the world which help young people in difficult social conditions to help themselves.
The mission of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation is to utilise the power of sport to address social challenges through a worldwide programme of sports related community development initiatives, using sport as a tool for social change.

Taking responsibility with social commitment
Georges Kern explains the company's motivation to adopt this commitment as follows: "The privileged people on this planet - and we are among them - must do something to help those who are socially, physically or economically disadvantaged." This clearly does not only apply to individuals but also to the economy as a whole. "We as a company bear a social responsibility." And the company carries out these responsibilities not only through the overarching Laureus Global Foundation, but also through a direct commitment with the national Laureus Sport for Good Foundations. This may take the form of additional financial subsidies, support from IWC's local employees and local infrastructure, or from the IWC network in the country in question. In Switzerland, for example, IWC Schaffhausen is playing a particularly important role in the setting up the Swiss branch of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. 
IWC obtained its first experience of social sponsorship through its support of the Cousteau Society, which was founded by Jacques-Yves Cousteau, the legendary diver and underwater filmmaker, in 1974, and whose central objective is to preserve the foundations for life in the world's oceans. Another important partnership is the one with the descendants of the famous French pilot and great writer Antoine de Saint Exupery. To support the humanitarian project Vol de Nuit/Vuelo Nocturno of Saint Exupery's greatnephew in Buenos Aires, a unique watch of IWC came up for auction with Christie's New York. IWC donated the proceeds from the sale to that association that looks after the interests of disadvantaged children in Argentina.
Time for social responsibility Laureus and IWC
The top man at IWC explains this engagement as follows: "Today, people expect companies to give them authenticity and to represent genuine values." Solidarity with underprivileged individuals is one of those values. It is the sustainability principle that is becoming increasingly important for society and, ultimately, for potential customers. In the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which helps underprivileged children and adolescents to help themselves, IWC has found the ideal partner for an active form of social commitment. Social sponsorship has been almost de rigueur for successful corporations in the USA for some time now, and the significance of this mix between charity and marketing is becoming increasingly important in Europe. "Do good things and talk about them: that is the motto."
Combining top-level sport with charity
In the case of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, in over 60 projects worldwide almost 150,000 children and adolescents have been helped since its inception and have benefited from the commitment of the two corporations. "The major strength of this Foundation is the combination of charity and sport at the very highest level", says Georges Kern. Ultimately, one of the main supports of the organization is the Laureus World Sports Academy. "This consists of the most important sports personalities in the world", Kern points out - not without pride - adding the rhetorical question, "Where else - apart from Laureus - will you find names like Mark Spitz, Edwin Moses and Boris Becker working together to the same end?" Between them, the Academy members account for over 100 Olympic medals, 100 world championship titles and 200 world records.
If only for this reason, IWC's commitment to Laureus represents a unique chance for the company, explains the CEO. As a manufacturer of top-quality sports watches, IWC Schaffhausen already has a close affinity to sports stars of the past and present. It is undoubtedly a huge honour for the watch manufacturer to work so closely with such successful and irreproachable sports and stars. It is also significant that the Academy is made up of more than 20 different nationalities, as well as a wide range of races, cultures and religious beliefs. Georges Kern sees this as yet another symbol that sport is able to surmount the boundaries between nations, races, cultures and religions. Or, as Nelson Mandela once so succinctly expressed it: "Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope, where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers."
Underprivileged children rub shoulders with sport's big stars
Academy members were already close to their public while still active. Today, they maintain this closeness by regularly visiting projects organised by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. By doing so, they give the projects public significance and at the same time indicate to the children and adolescents involved - who are usually disadvantaged - that they are being taken seriously by society. At the same time, these encounters with the stars leave a lasting, positive impression on the young people. Any youngster who has had a chance to run against Edwin Moses, play tennis with Boris Becker or kick a football with Bobby Charlton is not going to forget it in a hurry.
In the short time that IWC Schaffhausen has been involved with Laureus, Georges Kern has spoken to many of the Academy members. And he hears the same sentiment repeated time and time again - "I'd like to give back something for everything that sport has given me." This explains why the Laureus sporting legends are prepared to donate their time to travel around the world each year doing what they can to support the various projects.
The book "Let the Children Play"
IWC Schaffhausen has conceived and produced a unique book called "Let the Children Play" in collaboration with the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which outlines the work of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. The high quality coffee table book with powerful iconic photographic images and on-the-ground reports will generate greater awareness of the mission of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which uses sport as a vehicle for social change in deprived communities.
Facts on the book
"Let the Children Play", is a hard cover coffee table book, published by IWC in English and contains 276 pages. The book can be ordered over the internet at www.iwc.com or www.laureus.com It is non-profit making and part of the proceeds will go towards the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.

Swiss watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen has commissioned Sotheby's to sell a unique and precious timepiece at auction, with the proceeds of the sale to be donated to charity: the only existing platinum version of the Big Pilot's Watch Edition Antoine de Saint Exupery will be sold together with a special edition of the Saint Exupery biography "L'archange et l'ecrivain".

The proceeds will be donated to the French organisation "Enfants du Monde/Droits de l'Homme" (EMDH), which works worldwide to protect children and their rights.
On 9 May 2010 at Sotheby's "Important Watches" auction in Geneva, an IWC Schaffhausen watch will be sold of which only one exists in the world: the Big Pilot's Watch Edition Antoine de Saint Exupery in platinum. This icon of Swiss-manufactured aviator watches is highly distinctive both in terms of looks and functionality. Its sporty elegance features a high-calibre platinum watch case, tobacco brown dial and a special back engraving depicting Saint Exupery as a military pilot. Its classic functionality and superior mechanical properties also set this watch apart. The IWC-manufactured 51111 calibre with automatic Pellaton winding, 7-day power reserve, power reserve display, Breguet spring and date display make this novel timepiece one of the best in its class, a fact reflected in its reserve price. The auction will open on 9 May in Geneva at the Hotel Beau Rivage, and the Big Pilot's Watch Edition Antoine de Saint Exupery in platinum will be auctioned together with a special edition of the Saint Exupery biography "L'archange et l'ecrivain" by Nathalie Des Vallieres at a reserve price of CHF 50,000. The entire proceeds from the auction of this timepiece will be donated by IWC Schaffhausen to the French organisation "Enfants du Monde/Droits de l'Homme" (EMDH), which works worldwide to protect children and their rights. In particular, IWC supports projects in Madagascar, where EMDH has been working together with local partners since 1994 to help disadvantaged children.
Homage to Antoine de Saint Exupery
The fourth special edition pilot's watch commemorating Antoine de Saint Exupery completes the collection of exclusive timepieces designed by IWC to honour this renowned aviator and humanist. While the earlier special edition watches in this collection all focused on a selected literary work with flying as their theme, this edition is dedicated to author's entire literary oeuvre. Saint Exupery was born on 29 June 1900 in Lyon and disappeared at age forty-four during a reconnaissance flight over southern France when his plane was shot down and crashed into the sea. IWC CEO Georges Kern is greatly looking forward to the auction: "This reverence of Antoine de Saint Exupery's life's work in true aviator spirit is the crowning event in our four-part homage. The person who ultimately owns this prestigious timepiece will not only enjoy the distinction it embodies but also, through its purchase, can improve the developmental opportunities for needy children in Madagascar."

IWC and Antoine de Saint Exupery
IWC Schaffhausen, the Swiss watch manufacturer, founded a partnership with Societe Civile pour l'OEuvre et la Memoire d'Antoine de Saint Exupery Perfect landing for a unique timepiece: The exclusive Big Pilot's Watch Edition Antoine de Saint Exupery in platinum, by IWC Schaffhausen, on auction at Sotheby's in Geneva in 2005, and since then the two organisations have launched a number of joint projects. The series of IWC special edition watches honouring Antoine de Saint Exupery was launched in 2006 with the Pilot's Watch Chrono-Automatic. In 2007, the Pilot's Watch Automatic followed, and in 2008 the series continued with the Pilot's Watch UTC. How the proceeds from the auction are used is decided in cooperation with the Societe Civile pour l'OEuvre et la Memoire d'Antoine de Saint Exupery, which ensures that the donation reflects values held dear by Saint Exupery.
A brighter future thanks to EMDH
The proceeds from the auction of this timepiece will be donated to the French organisation "Enfants du Monde/Droits de l'Homme" (EMDH), which is committed to protecting children and their rights worldwide. Since it was founded more than 20 years ago, EMDH has worked tirelessly in many countries to see the provisions and principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child put into practice. IWC will donate the proceeds from this sale to aid developmental opportunities for disadvantaged children on the African island of Madagascar. 70 percent of the people living there exist below the poverty level - more than half of all families and children cannot afford medical treatment either from a doctor or hospital. "Enfants du Monde/Droits de l'Homme" focusses its activities on this African island in the areas of education, health care and social welfare projects aimed to prevent child labour and exploitation, and it also places increased attention on education and medical care.