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(u-s:b /Rado) In 1962, Rado launched a timepiece with a unique destiny, named the DiaStar. Since then, the world’s first scratchproof watch has enjoyed uninterrupted success for over 40 years. Its timeless appearance has earned it recognition in design circles and the new wave for vintage classics is taking it to even higher peaks of fame. It now emerges reinforced, rejuvenated, enhanced and barely altered: The Original… simply immortal.

The history of the design world is dotted with some watershed creations: from the VW Beetle to the Coca-Cola bottle and from the Le Corbusier chair to The Original by Rado, certain objects immediately evoke a fashion that never goes out of fashion, a lifestyle that becomes universal.

A scratchproof world première
Since it first emerged from the Rado workshops in 1962, the DiaStar – the world’s first scratchproof watch – has without interruption been sold in astonishing numbers: over three million to date. In creating this legendary model with its unique lines that have been enduringly recognisable over the decades, the brand’s engineers had undertaken lengthy research and development work in order to find just the right formula for the famous hard metal, combining the hardness of tungsten carbide with the tenacity of cobalt. No other watch brand had previously dared to use this material for watch exteriors.

Since the 1960s, this hard metal has become one of the favourite materials for Rado – along with the famous high-tech ceramics developed for Rado in the 1980s – and represents a genuine brand signature. While diamonds' hardness and resistance to scratches score on the Vickers scale at 10,000, titanium is at 145 - 350 Vickers, gold at 30 - 230 Vickers, steel at 140 - 350 Vickers, Rado high-tech ceramics at 1250 - 2000 and Rado hard metal at 1350 - 2000 Vickers.

All of which goes to explain why this oval-shaped watch had what it took to make its mark on its time, perfectly reflecting the brand DNA which has consistently blended powerful design and innovative materials. It has indeed stood the test of time: The Original rapidly asserted itself as a classic in its field, one of these objects that no longer face the tough task of appealing for a season or maybe for a year or two. Its rigorous, simple lines have earned it unabated success for almost 45 years and on all five continents. Today, The Original continues to appeal both to watch making enthusiasts and to design devotees. Now enhanced by dynamic new attributes, it is ready to pursue its legend.

The fruit of visionary inspiration
Time which unsparingly erases many forms of human creation retains only a chosen few: whereas thousands of timepieces emerge each year from watch making workshops, only a handful of models prove capable of finding their way through changing times, engraving their name in watch making history and representing milestones. They are the result of in-depth work and reflection conducted by visionary designers, capable of visualising future trends well in advance.
“What is art?” asked the painter Georges Braque, answering with his own words, “It is that by which form become style”. A sweeping statement from a great and resolutely avant-garde creator, because in actual fact anticipating a fashion, a lifestyle or a philosophical train of thought is not within everyone’s reach. Yet it does sometimes happen that a brilliantly creative individual – technician, artist, architect or designer – prefigures a line or discovers a revolutionary technology. Such was the case for Marc Lederrey, the mind behind the DiaStar. A talented “anticipator”, he laid the foundations for a watch that carried within it the visionary power required to find its way unscathed through future generations.

The pursuit of perfection
English architect and designer John Pawson defined the perfect design in these terms: “The minimum could be defined as the perfection that an artefact achieves when it is no longer possible to improve it by substraction.” A definition entirely suited to The Original and which doubtless explains why the purchaser’s gaze, attention and interest are instinctively drawn to it, whatever the era.

Rado could have continued selling its cult watch without making even the slightest change, apart from incorporating certain advanced technological features that have considerably enhanced the reliability and performance of timepieces over the past century. Yet today as always, Rado remains loyal to a fundamental principle: staying ahead of its times. A signature quality that has forged the strength of the brand.

Recognised for its mastery of avant-garde and for the flowing, sleek aesthetics of its products, Rado has decided to treat the design of its star model to a genuinely contemporary touch in direct line with the craze for vintage trends.

A new collection of The Original is thus being launched in 2005, initially comprising three variations: The Original Classic with automatic movement, The Original Chronograph as well as The Original Diver. They are all entirely faithful to the spirit and the qualities of the original version – including the hard metal which has undergone only slight modifications since 1962. A number of tiny details conspire to create its brand-new pedigree, giving it a brand-new appearance that will appeal to people from all circles and to trendsetters of all ages. Because with the advent of the new millennium, consumers’ hearts have started to beat faster to the rhythm of vintage.
Long live the legendary products that history has transformed into icons!

An icon for life
In the words of designer and architect Ettore Sottsass, “Design does not mean giving a form to a more or less stupid object, for a more or less sophisticated industry. It is a way of conceiving life, politics, eroticism, food, and even design.” Rado has long since grasped that the perception of The Original – meaning what makes this product so unique – goes well beyond the object itself. It is the expression of a lifestyle and a philosophy of aesthetics and beauty. By subtly modifying the image of The Original, Rado is offering the public a chance to question the suggestive power of an icon. By rejuvenating its 'prima donna', Rado proves that an object that has reached perfection can merge into the evolution of watch making history and meld with the constraints and the tastes of an era, without modifying the essence of its very soul.

The Original 2005
Representing the ultimate cult and cultural object, the 2005 version of The Original adds several new assets to its reputation. These have been made through a series of careful touches and with great dexterity, since one cannot lightly toy with the aesthetic characteristics of one of the most recognisable models in contemporary watch making.

A crown that is subtly enlarged and screw-locked, enhanced with a crown guard that soften the overall lines of the case. Water-resistance improved to 100 metres, a specific feature symbolised by the medallion engraving of a seahorse on the screwed-in case back. The bezel is stamped with the Rado logo at 9 o’clock. The bracelet and its lugs have also been designed according to more contemporary standards to be broader, better suited to the overall liens of the watch and even more comfortable. Finally, the dials present a new extremely readable dial.

The Original Classic in its L and XL versions houses a mechanical self-winding Swiss movement endowed with a 38-hour power reserve. It displays the hours, minutes, seconds and a date window at 4 o’clock. Like all Rado models equipped with mechanical self-winding movements, The Original Classic is graced with the symbol of a stylized, oscillating anchor appearing at 6 o’clock on the dial. The facetted sapphire crystal continues to cast glinting reflections on the dial with its luminescent numerals, creating a sort of play on shade and light. Hard metal bezel, steel case measuring 34.9 mm by 42.6 mm (L) or 38.6 mm by 46.2 mm (XL), satin-brushed and polished steel bracelet, titanium buckle. The dial comes in a choice of charcoal grey, silvered, black, blue and red for the L and XL versions.

The Original in the chronograph version is equipped with a high-precision Swiss quartz movement. 60-second and 60-minute counters with central hands, 1/10th of a second display at 2 o’clock, 12-hour totalizer at 10 o’clock, as well as ADD and SPLIT functions. Hours, minutes, small seconds at 6 o’clock and date window at 4 o’clock. Hard metal bezel, steel case measuring 38.6 mm by 46.2 mm, satin-brushed and polished steel bracelet, titanium clasp. Dial with applied Rado logo in a choice of black with luminous orange, white or green indexes.

The Original Diver is the sportiest version of the new Original models. This eye-catching diver’s watch features two crowns: at 2 o’clock for the rotating bezel, which indicates the diving time, and at 3 o’clock for the setting up of time and calendar function.
Steel case: 38.6 mm x 46.2 mm, water resistant to 300 metres/1000 feet. The back of the screwed case is decorated with a stamped ‘seahorses’ medallion.
The precision automatic ETA 2824-2 movement with 25 jewels provides a power reserve of 38 hours; hour, minute and seconds hands plus date at 3 o’clock.
Extra-strong SuperLuminova (SLN) luminescent treatment on hands, while the green or red index dots make reading the time effortlessly easy, even underwater. The black dial displays the Rado logo, the free-moving Rado anchor and the calendar window at 3 o’clock.
The rotating bezel is also available in a choice of two different colour combinations: either in green/black/white with the numerals 15, 30, 45 and 60 in black, or in red/blue/white/black with the numerals 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 in white. The solid steel bracelet boasts a polished satin finish and is fastened with a titanium clasp.

Accessible to all markets and to all cultures, The Original versions 2005 rises to the challenge consistently pursued by the Rado brand: that of combining understated, classic and timeless design with the most sophisticated high-performance materials.

Autor:  
Rado 

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