To celebrate the start of 2024, the Year of the Dragon, IWC Schaffhausen has unveiled a limited edition version of their Portugieser chronograph with a stunning burgundy dial!
The Lunar New Year in the Chinese calendar is the year of the Loong (the Dragon), and true to tradition, IWC Schaffhausen welcomes this new year with a stunning new limited edition timepiece. Lunar New Year officially starts on the 10th of February, with this year being marked as the “Wood” Dragon year, occurring only every 60 years. To commemorate this special occasion, the brand has chosen a timepiece that is special in its own right, one that is easily distinguished as IWC Schaffhausen.
Created back in 1939, the Portugieser is one of the most popular models in IWC Schaffhausen’s collection of timepieces. The chronograph is a derivation of this model, featuring the high precision and great readability the Portugieser models are known for. The first Portugieser chronograph model from IWC Schaffhausen, released in 1998, was the Portuguese Automatic Chronograph ref. 3714. This timepiece is one of the most successful watches the brand has introduced into the watch market. It only makes sense then to create a limited-edition model with this timepiece to welcome the Year of the Dragon.
“Since 1998, the Portugieser Chronograph has embodied the dynamic, sporty side of IWC Schaffhausen’s acclaimed Portugieser collection. Thanks to the dial layout with the vertically arranged counters and the quarter-seconds precision scale, it has become one of our most coveted designs. We are convinced it is a fitting model to welcome the Year of the Dragon.”
Peter Lao, Managing Director of IWC Schaffhausen China.
IWC Schaffhausen’s latest Portugieser Chronograph Year of the Dragon (Ref. IW371629) is presented in a 41mm stainless steel case, which perfectly complements the burgundy coloured dial. The brand chose the colour burgundy as it symbolises the vibrant colour of fire, which has been traditionally used to welcome the Lunar New Year. The colour is also said to bring in luck and longevity.
What I also like about the dial is that instead of using case colour-matching hands and hour indices (rhodium plated, for example), IWC Schaffhausen has used gold plating. This gives the dial an extra touch of colour, which, against the burgundy, the gold stands out beautifully.
This limited-edition model retains the iconic design of the Portugieser Chronograph, in-fact, besides colour variations, most of the details of this model remain unchanged from the current Portugieser Chronograph models. All except one detail.
The Portugieser Chronograph Year of the Dragon comes fitted with IWC Schaffhausen manufactured 69355 calibre movement, a high precision movement with a classic column wheel design. Where this movement changes for this particular watch is on the case back. As a reference to the Year of the Dragon, one of the core design elements of this timepiece is the beautifully designed gold-plated dragon used as the winding rotor. Also on the case back is the engraving “YEAR OF THE DRAGON 2024” and the individually numbered limited edition number of the watch.
IWC Schaffhausen has limited the total number of this Portugieser Chronograph to just 1000 models. It is being offered as standard with two strap options. Firstly is the burgundy rubber strap, which matches the dial nicely, or you also get a black calfskin strap, which contrasts against the burgundy dial and lets it stand out beautifully. Personally, the black strap against this burgundy dial with its gold accents seems to be the best choice due to its wearability and stand-out factor.
The Portugieser Chronograph Year of the Dragon is available for purchase through IWC boutiques, authorised retail partners, or online at IWC.com. If the timepiece gets registered under the My IWC care programme, the International Limited Warranty will be extended from the standard two years to now six years!
Reference: IW371629
Specification
- Case: 41mm, 13.1mm thick
- Case Material: Stainless Steel
- Dial: Burgundy dial, gold-plated hands and appliques.
- Crystal: Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
- Water resistance: 30m / 3 Bar
- Movement: IWC-manufactured calibre 69355
- Movement Frequency: 4Hz (28, 800 VpH)
- Power reserve: 46h
- Strap: Black calfskin strap or burgundy rubber strap
