Founded in 1894 in Le Locle by Numa-Émile Descombes and Ulysse Georges Perret, Universal Genève established itself in the interwar years as one of the great Swiss chronograph manufactures. Unlike many of its peers, which sourced their movements from specialist subcontractors, Universal controlled the entire process through its subsidiary Martel-Watch, the Pellaton family’s manufacture in Les Ponts-de-Martel, which developed and produced the house chronograph calibers in-house. These same calibers would also power chronographs signed Zenith, Jaeger-LeCoultre or Girard-Perregaux.
From the 1930s, Universal Genève introduced the Compax family, which would structure its chronograph offering for three decades. Based on a single in-house caliber offered in several diameters – 281, 285, 287, 292 – the family branched out: Compax (three-register chronograph), Uni-Compax (two registers), Aero-Compax (chronograph combined with a secondary time indicator), Tri-Compax (full calendar and moon phases), Médico-Compax (pulsometer scale) and – the subject at hand – the Dato-Compax, launched around 1942 and widely recognised as one of the very first wristwatch chronographs to incorporate the date. The function is handled with singular elegance: indicated by a slender red hand sweeping a 1-31 calendar disc placed at 12 o’clock, it leaves the geometric purity of the register dial undisturbed by any aperture. Reference 22530, in stainless steel and fitted with caliber 287, is the most accomplished version of the Dato-Compax in its so-called “Jumbo” format: a 37.5 mm case, generous for the period, with faceted lugs that remain one of the most recognisable stylistic signatures of UG production in the 1940s and 1950s. It was during this period that Universal Genève chronographs accompanied the leading figures of post-war command – such as the Tri-Compax presented to President Truman at the Potsdam summit in July 1945 – and that the house reached its artistic and industrial zenith.
The example we are pleased to offer is immediately striking for its exceptional state of preservation. Its case has never been polished since it was made more than 80 years ago: the edges of the faceted lugs – a case treatment typical of Compax models of this period, combining brushed flanks with mirror-polished lug faces – remain extremely crisp and precisely defined, to a degree rarely encountered on this design. The chamfered square pushers, a hallmark of the Compax before the advent of round pushers in the 1950s, are preserved intact and operate with the expected precision. The snap-on caseback bears reference 22530 and serial number 877xxx on the outside – the latter dating production to around 1942 – and reveals on the inside the Universal Genève medallion together with the “ENVERSTEEL” mark, a registered trademark denoting the manufacture’s proprietary stainless alloy, the Swiss equivalent of the British “Staybrite” or the German “Nirosta” used by its competitors.
The original dial displays a superb, even honey patina of particular harmony. The four registers follow the model’s classic grammar: 1-31 calendar disc at 12 o’clock, swept by its original red hand, small seconds at 9 o’clock, 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock, 12-hour counter at 6 o’clock. The periphery carries the two characteristic tachymeter scales – base 60 and base 1000 – allowing the measurement of both rapid and extended rates. Universal Genève chronographs from the 1940s that have retained their original dial, and in fine condition at that, are very rare. They often sport “refinished” dials – which, in our view, destroys their appeal. We are delighted to present this example with its original dial, which has developed a very beautiful, homogeneous patina while remaining in excellent condition. The blued steel hour, minute and chronograph hands are original.
The movement, Universal Genève caliber 287 with column wheel and manual winding, is the culmination of Pellaton-Martel’s work: 14 ¾ lignes (33.2 mm in diameter, 6.85 mm thick), 17 jewels, 18,000 vibrations per hour. The gilt brass bridges have lost none of their allure. It has been fully restored by one of our experienced watchmakers and runs very well.
This is without any doubt the finest example of the Dato-Compax reference 22530 we have ever had the opportunity to see: as much a historic piece – one of the very first wristwatch chronographs to incorporate the date – as a horological object, in a state of preservation that makes it a true witness to the pinnacle of Universal Genève’s production. A rare opportunity for the discerning collector to acquire a reference that the golden age of UG chronographs raised to a degree of elegance the house has perhaps never regained since.
