Last updated Fig.1: Men's R151 dark green, front crown with groove Fig.2: Men's R151 dark green, back original embossed lettering Fig.3: Men's R151 dark green, inside seal and battery installed
The RockWatch or Rock Watch was a trademarked brand[1] of wristwatch by Tissot with a case essentially made of stone, initially alpinegranite from the Grisons, Ticino, and Valais cantons of Switzerland. It was designed by Robert Mazlo and first introduced to the U.S. market in December 1985 and in Switzerland March 1986.Tissot claims it was the world's first wristwatch with a case made of natural stone. The cavities for the movement and dial face were milled from both sides, making the dial an integral part of the case. The straps were fixed to the back plate on both ends thus preventing mechanical stress to the stone.
Fig.4: Men's R151 dark green, original strap buckle
Backplate lettering was originally embossed and "RockWatch" written in capitalized form (see Fig.2); some laser-engraved pieces were sold at some point later on. The final batches were fitted with a slightly redesigned embossed plate with a modernized T-logo and "rockwatch" in lower case letters (see Fig.5).
The original stone design was followed up by a similar watch with mother-of-pearl cases commonly nicknamed PearlWatch, while the backplates continued to carry the RockWatch name.
It was ultimately succeeded by the WoodWatch, made from exotic timbers and in larger case sizes (33mm / 38.5mm).
Tissot RockWatch
Country of origin
Switzerland
Production
1985 to 1992
Case material
natural stone
Case diameter (excluding crown)
23mm (R140 Ladies' size)
30mm (R150 Unisex size)
33mm (R151 Men's size)
Lens
sapphire crystal
Back plate
stainless steel (matte finish)
attached with 6 screws
Crown
stainless steel (matte finish on granite cases)
Strap material
leather (standard)
natural stone (optional bracelet style)
Strap width
R140: 10mm
R150: 16mm
R151: 18mm
Strap buckle
pin fastening
Water resistance
none
Movement
ETA 976.001 quartz, 6 jewels, 32kHz, Swiss-made[2]
Fig.5: Men's R151 white&black, back late issue redesign
Early pieces have red (minute) and yellow (hour) hands, the colors of Swiss hiking trailsmarkers. Later issues of the R150 size have green and black hands, and many different combinations followed suit. Towards the end of production, gold/gold was used regularly.
The R150/R151's smooth rounded crown has a matte stainless steel finish on standard granite pieces, with a single distinctive groove (see Fig.1) whereas the small R140's flat crown is knurled for ease of use. Late issues feature a variety of different crown finishes, while the shapes were kept throughout.[3]
Leather straps with Tissot-marked buckles were standard (see Fig.4) while bracelet-style straps made from the same stone as the case were later introduced as a premium option. The straps are held by proprietary pins.
When introduced, the standard granite/leather versions of the intermediate size retailed for $195 in the U.S.,[4] and CHF 350 in Switzerland. Over 500,000 were sold.[5] Giant clocks sculpted authentically after the watch case by contract artist Felice Bottinelli could be seen in jewellers' shop windows all over Switzerland, adding to the recognition of this product.[6]
Product support was terminated around 2006.
References and external links
↑ U.S. Trademark registration numbers 1453146, 1941265, 3213659, 4694037
A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by a watch strap or other type of bracelet, including metal bands, leather straps, or any other kind of bracelet. A pocket watch is designed for a person to carry in a pocket, often attached to a chain.
A pocket watch is a watch that is made to be carried in a pocket, as opposed to a wristwatch, which is strapped to the wrist.
Seiko Group Corporation, commonly known as Seiko, is a Japanese maker of watches, clocks, electronic devices, semiconductors, jewelry, and optical products. Founded in 1881 by Kintarō Hattori in Tokyo, Seiko introduced the world's first commercial quartz wristwatch in 1969.
The Hamilton Watch Company is a Swiss manufacturer of wristwatches based in Bienne, Switzerland. Founded in 1892 as an American firm, the Hamilton Watch Company ended American manufacture in 1969. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the Hamilton Watch Company eventually became integrated into the Swatch Group, the world's largest watch manufacturing and marketing conglomerate.
The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona is a mechanical chronograph wristwatch designed to meet the needs of racing drivers by measuring elapsed time and calculating average speed. Its name refers to Daytona, Florida, where racing flourished in the early 20th century. It has been manufactured by Rolex since 1963 in three distinct generations ; the second series was introduced in 1988, and the third in 2000. While cosmetically similar, the second series introduced a self-winding movement, and the third series brought manufacture of the movement in-house to Rolex.
The Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner is a line of sports watches designed for diving and manufactured by Rolex, resistant to water and corrosion. The first Submariner was introduced to the public in 1954 at the Basel Watch Fair. It was the first watch to be waterproof up to 100m. The Rolex Submariner is considered "a classic among wristwatches", manufactured by one of the most widely recognized luxury brands in the world. Due to its huge popularity, there are many homage watches by well-established watchmakers, as well as illegal counterfeits. The Rolex Submariner is part of Rolex's Oyster Perpetual line.
Montres Corum Sàrl, commonly referred to as Corum, is a Swiss watchmaker based in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Canton of Neuchâtel. Founded in 1955, it makes high-quality and high-price watches, many of which are limited editions. The benchmark watch series for Corum is its "Admiral's Cup" series. The company is owned by Hong Kong-based Citychamp Watch & Jewellery Group Limited together with Eterna. Both of these Swiss watch companies are managed by a management committee composed of Yeznig Magdhessian, Soon Boon Chong & Maxime Ranzoni.
Gérald Charles Genta was a Swiss watchmaker and artist. He is known for his eponymous lines of timepieces, such as Gerald Genta and Gerald Charles, as well as his design work with other high-end watch manufacturers, including IWC, Omega, Universal Genève, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet. Genta created the Patek Phillipe Nautilus and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, to date, the best-selling models of both houses. He is regarded as one of the most influential people in the history of horology.
Universal Genève SA is a Swiss luxury watch company, founded in 1894 as Universal Watch. Since its beginnings, the company has produced complete watches with in-house movements. Along with neighboring Geneva companies Audemars Piguet, Girard-Perregaux, Patek Philippe and Rolex, Universal is internationally regarded for its style of craftsmanship as a manufacture d'horlogerie. Universal Genève is known for creating the first-ever chronograph in 1917.
Gallet (ˈgæl.eɪ) is a historic Swiss manufacturer of high-end timepieces for professional, military, sports, racing, and aviation use. Gallet is the world's oldest watch and clock making house with history dating back to Humbertus Gallet, a clock maker who became a citizen of Geneva in 1466. The Gallet & Cie name was officially registered by Julien Gallet (1806–1849) in 1826, who moved the family business from Geneva to La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. Prior to this date, operations commenced under the name of each of the Gallet family patriarchs.
Linde Werdelin is a luxury Swiss-Danish watchmaker founded in 2002 by Morten Linde and Jorn Werdelin and specializes in crafting limited and numbered series of watches and instruments. Linde Werdelin watches are made in Switzerland but the designers are Danish. By combining analogue and digital technologies, Linde Werdelin produces and manufactures mechanical watches along with instruments for skiing and diving that clip on top of the watch. Linde Werdelin creates limited and numbered editions of up to 100 pieces.
The Bozeman Watch Company of Bozeman, Montana, was an American company that designed and engineered its own timepieces and had its mechanical components certified by the Contrôle officiel suisse des Chronomètres (COSC) certified timepieces. It went out of business in 2015.
US military watches are watches that are issued to US military personnel.
Montres Tudor SA, or simply Tudor, is a Swiss watchmaker based in Geneva, Switzerland. Registered in 1926 by Hans Wilsdorf, founder of Rolex, the brand remains a sister company to Rolex; both companies are owned by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation. Tudor was initially known for watches produced for the military and professional divers. From the 1960s to 1980s, several navies issued Tudor Submariners to their divers, including the US Navy SEALs and the French Marine Nationale.
Ochs und junior AG is a Swiss watch manufacturer based in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, which is specialised on producing mechanical wristwatches. The company was founded in 2006 by Ludwig Oechslin, a universal scholar and master watchmaker and Kurt König, Managing Director of Embassy and Beat Weinmann. The Ulysse Nardin watch company became a shareholder of Ochs und junior AG in 2012; today ochs und junior is a pure family business.
Elmar Mock is a Swiss watch engineer with specialized knowledge in polymers, an industrial designer, and inventor.
Patria Watch Co or simply Patria, is a Swiss luxury watchmaker based in Bienne, Switzerland, founded in 1892 by Louis Brandt et Frère. Patria manufactured military trench watches which were used extensively in The First World War between 1914 and 1918 and manufactured premium watches to this day in Switzerland. Patria shares a common founder, Louis Brandt et Frère with Omega SA. Patria began making watches again in the last decade, these watches being manufactured and produced in Switzerland, Patria is considered a premium watch brand
Temption GmbH is a manufacturer of mechanical wristwatches. The company is based in Herrenberg, Germany.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
