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Movado, a company whose name means "always in motion" in Esperanto, began its life in 1881 in a small workshop in La Chaux-de-faunds, Switzerland. Founded by talented watchmaker Achille Ditisheim and his team of six employees, all watches were manufactured and assembled by hand. By 1899, their hard work and determination had paid off. They were awarded six first-class Official Rating Certificates in their class, and in the following year, they were awarded the Silver Medal at the Universal Exhibition in Paris.
By 1905, the company had settled on its now famous name, Movado, and began in earnest its now famous pursuit of excellence in design and function. They won the 1910 Grand Prix Exhibitions in Paris, Rome, Brussels and Rio de Janeiro for their introduction of 8 ligne wristwatch movements. The introduction of the Polyplan watch in 1912 took the watch community by storm, and these watches are highly sought after at auction today.
In 1947, American designer Nathan George Horwitt created the first Museum Watch. It featured an uncluttered dial, with a simple gold dot marker at the 12:00 position. He likened the design to that of a sun-dial, like recognizing the sun at its zenith at high noon. Movado later teamed up with designers and artists such as Andy Warhol to create one-of-a-kind limited edition watches, which reside in museums, galleries, and collections today.
Movado is returning to its roots today. It has re-introduced the KingMatic series, which was originally introduced in the 1950's, and featured the first automatic movement and sweeping second hand, both driven from a central rotor. Today, the KingMatic features an all stainless steel case, stainless steel or leather bracelet, sapphire crystal, automatic movement, and is water resistant to 50 meters.
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