Certina
Certina DS Action 42 mm Ice 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.
Certina · DS Action
Certina DS Action 42 mm Ice 18k
Reference 49959OR.77
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Certina
- Collection
- DS Action
- Model
- Certina DS Action 42 mm Ice 18k
- Reference number
- 49959OR.77
- Year / era
- 1984 · 1980s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Moon phase
- Movement
- Automatic COSC chronometer
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Water resistance
- 30 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 42 mm
- Case thickness
- 14.1 mm
- Case material
- 18k white gold
- Bezel
- Unidirectional ceramic 60-minute
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Skeletonised sword hands, white luminescent
- Indexes
- Applied Roman numerals
- Bracelet / strap
- Alligator leather with folding clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Folding clasp in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 30 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 24B — Automatic COSC chronometer
- Movement type
- Automatic with micro-rotor
- Frequency
- 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
- Number of jewels
- 40 jewels
- Complications
- Moon phase
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1984 – 1996
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Certina DS Action 42 mm Ice 18k sits within Certina's DS Action line, introduced in 1984. It carries the house codes established since 1888 — 18k white gold 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 bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
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.