he story of Oris is different to so many Swiss watch companies. It began in 1904 with two watchmakers, Paul Cattin'>Cattin and Georges Christian. The pair were based in the watchmaking heartland of Le Locle, but rather than found their company there, they ventured west towards Basel. They settled in Hölstein, an unassuming village nestled in the beautiful Waldenburg Valley. But why?

Their decision owed a great deal to the Waldenburgerbahn (WB), an efficient, lowcost rail network opened in 1880 that linked the valley. It covered just 13km, but passed right by what would become the Oris factory.

It’s impact? “The Waldenburgerbahn linked Hölstein and Oris to the world,” says Andreas Büttiker, CEO, BLT Baselland Transport AG. “The WB was and is the lifeline of the valley. In the 19th century, it fuelled industrial development and the founding of numerous, innovative companies, especially in the watchmaking and precision engineering industries. Oris, like the WB, stands for reliability, quality and innovation.”

Marking the WB’s recent upgrade, Oris introduces the Waldenburgerbahn Limited Edition, a 1,000-piece watch based on our signature Big Crown Pointer Date.

The brand settled quickly on a design based on the Big Crown. First introduced in 1938, in constant production ever since, the timeless Big Crown is a vital piece of the history of Oris, just like the Waldenburgerbahn.

The Waldenburgerbahn Limited Edition is a 1,000-piece watch that carries the echo of generations of Oris watchmakers who have been travelling to Hölstein on the train since the company was founded in 1904.

Why do this now? In December, the 13km network will be reopened after an 18-month project to upgrade it to the latest tramway technology. Once again, Oris employees will be able to make their way to work using this alternative, low-carbon means of transport, helping to deliver on the Oris Emissions Reduction Programme, unveiled earlier this year in the brands first sustainability report.

The watch has a 40mm stainless steel case and fluted bezel, and a domed sapphire crystal over a black dial decorated with large, lumed Arabic numerals and a railway-track minute scale. It’s powered by Oris Calibre 754, which fuels our signature Pointer Date function, whereby a central, red-tipped hand points to a date scale running around the edge of the dial. It’s finished on a dark brown strap made of sustainable deer leather supplied by Oris partner Cervo Volante.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Case: Multi-piece stainless steel case
• Size: 40.00 mm (1.575 inches)
• Dial: Black
• Luminous material: Indices, numbers and hands with Super-LumiNova®
• Top glass: Sapphire, domed on both sides, anti-reflective coating inside
• Case back: Stainless steel, screwed, special engravings
• Operating devices: Stainless steel screw-in security crown
• Strap: Dark brown Cervo Volante deer leather with quick strap change system
• Water resistance: 5 bar
• Movement: Oris 754
• Functions: Centre hands for hours, minutes and seconds, date centre hand, instantaneous date, date corrector, fine timing device and stop-second
• Winding: Automatic
• Power reserve: 38 hours
• Limited edition: 1,000 numbered pieces, with leather travel pouch and card holder, and special Hölstein map cleaning cloth
• Swiss retail price: CHF 2,100