Alpina
Alpina Comtesse 38 mm Meteorite 18k
Photography on request
Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Alpina · Comtesse
Alpina Comtesse 38 mm Meteorite 18k
Reference 35013OR.43
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Alpina
- Collection
- Comtesse
- Model
- Alpina Comtesse 38 mm Meteorite 18k
- Reference number
- 35013OR.43
- Year / era
- 1959 · 1950s — pre-quartz mechanical era
- Complication
- Tourbillon
- Movement
- Automatic COSC chronometer
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Dial type
- Meteorite
- Strap / bracelet
- NATO textile strap
- Water resistance
- 100 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Bezel
- Octagonal with 8 hexagonal screws
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Meteorite
- Hands
- Skeletonised sword hands, white luminescent
- Indexes
- Diamond-set hour markers
- Bracelet / strap
- NATO textile strap
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 100 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 58F — Automatic COSC chronometer
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
- Number of jewels
- 27 jewels
- Complications
- Tourbillon
- Functions
- GMT second time zone, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1959 – 1971
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Consistently trades above retail; waiting lists at authorised dealers remain long.
Designer
In-house design studio
The reference was drawn by the manufacture's internal design office, where case, dial and movement architects work alongside the watchmakers rather than as an outside commission.
Historical significance
Alpina Comtesse 38 mm Meteorite 18k sits within Alpina's Comtesse line, introduced in 1959. It carries the house codes established since 1883 — 18k white gold case, meteorite dial and automatic cosc chronometer — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Alpina
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1883
- Founder
- Gottlieb Hauser
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Affordable & Tool Watches
- Major collections
- Alpiner, Seastrong, Startimer, Comtesse
- Signature technologies
- Shock-absorbing movement mounting · Anti-magnetic silicon escapement · In-house hairspring production
- Famous movements
- Quartz · Automatic COSC chronometer · Automatic Powermatic 80 · Automatic, 38-hour reserve
- Notable watches
- Alpina Alpiner 44 mm Silvered Platinum (1955) · Alpina Alpiner 42 mm Black 18k (1966) · Alpina Alpiner 44 mm Ice Carbon (1992) · Alpina Alpiner 44 mm Salmon 18k (1961)
Brand history
Alpina has spent more than 143 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Alpiner, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Gottlieb Hauser established Alpina in 1883, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Alpina calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1883
Gottlieb Hauser founds Alpina in Switzerland.
1899
Alpina earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Alpina to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Alpina enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Alpina continues to produce Alpiner, Seastrong, Startimer and other icons in limited numbers.