Alpina
Alpina Comtesse 41 mm Blue Quartz
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 41 mm Blue Quartz
Reference 46489OR.85
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Alpina
- Collection
- Comtesse
- Model
- Alpina Comtesse 41 mm Blue Quartz
- Reference number
- 46489OR.85
- Year / era
- 1974 · 1970s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Tourbillon
- Movement
- Quartz
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Dial type
- Blue "Grande Tapisserie"
- Strap / bracelet
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Water resistance
- 100 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 188 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 41 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Bezel
- Fluted 18k gold
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Blue "Grande Tapisserie"
- Hands
- Rhodium-plated baton hands with luminous fill
- Indexes
- Applied Roman numerals
- Bracelet / strap
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 100 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 14E — Quartz
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 5 days
- Number of jewels
- 37 jewels
- Complications
- Tourbillon
- Functions
- Annual calendar, moon phase
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1974 – 1977
- Limited-edition quantity
- 188 pieces
- Current market information
- Values have stabilised after the 2022 correction; condition and box-and-papers drive the premium.
Designer
Jörg Hysek
Jörg Hysek left Rolex and Seiko's European studios to build a design practice in Geneva, giving houses such as Vacheron Constantin, Breguet, Seiko and TAG Heuer their sculptural, architecture-led cases before founding his own brand, HD3.
Historical significance
Alpina Comtesse 41 mm Blue Quartz sits within Alpina's Comtesse line, introduced in 1974. It carries the house codes established since 1883 — quartz tpt case, blue "grande tapisserie" dial and quartz — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
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.