Certina
Certina DS-1 40 mm Ice Carbon
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.
Certina · DS-1
Certina DS-1 40 mm Ice Carbon
Reference 76889OR.95
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Certina
- Collection
- DS-1
- Model
- Certina DS-1 40 mm Ice Carbon
- Reference number
- 76889OR.95
- Year / era
- 1988 · 1980s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Time and date
- Movement
- Automatic COSC chronometer
- Case material
- Carbon TPT
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Jubilee bracelet
- Water resistance
- 100 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 40 mm
- Case thickness
- 9.4 mm
- Case material
- Carbon TPT
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Anti-reflective sapphire, double-domed
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Blued steel Breguet-style hands
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- Jubilee bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 100 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 9A — Automatic COSC chronometer
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 5 days
- Number of jewels
- 33 jewels
- Complications
- Time and date
- Functions
- Chronograph, tachymeter, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1988 – 1991
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- 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
Certina DS-1 40 mm Ice Carbon sits within Certina's DS-1 line, introduced in 1988. It carries the house codes established since 1888 — carbon tpt case, ice blue dial and automatic cosc chronometer — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
The House
Certina
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1888
- Founder
- Adolf & Alfred Kurth
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Affordable & Tool Watches
- Major collections
- DS Action, DS PH200M, DS-1, DS Super PH500M
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Composite and ceramic case materials · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- Quartz · Automatic, 38-hour reserve · Automatic COSC chronometer · Automatic Powermatic 80
- Notable watches
- Certina DS Action 37 mm Silvered 18k (2002) · Certina DS Action 42 mm Ice 18k (1984) · Certina DS Action 42 mm Meteorite Stainless (1998) · Certina DS Action 37 mm Meteorite 18k (1952)
Brand history
Certina has spent more than 138 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's DS Action, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Adolf & Alfred Kurth established Certina in 1888, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Certina calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1888
Adolf & Alfred Kurth founds Certina in Switzerland.
1899
Certina earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Certina to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Certina enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Certina continues to produce DS Action, DS PH200M, DS-1 and other icons in limited numbers.