De Bethune
De Bethune DB25 40 mm Ice 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.
De Bethune · DB25
De Bethune DB25 40 mm Ice Quartz
Reference 97604OR.40
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- De Bethune
- Collection
- DB25
- Model
- De Bethune DB25 40 mm Ice Quartz
- Reference number
- 97604OR.40
- Year / era
- 2006 · 2000s — modern production
- Complication
- Chronograph
- Movement
- In-house tourbillon, manual-winding
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Jubilee bracelet
- Water resistance
- 30 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 40 mm
- Case thickness
- 9.4 mm
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Anti-reflective sapphire, double-domed
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Blued steel Breguet-style hands
- Indexes
- Diamond-set hour markers
- Bracelet / strap
- Jubilee bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Folding clasp in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 30 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 73E — In-house tourbillon, manual-winding
- Movement type
- Automatic, self-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 45 hours
- Number of jewels
- 21 jewels
- Complications
- Chronograph
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 2006 – 2013
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
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
De Bethune DB25 40 mm Ice Quartz sits within De Bethune's DB25 line, introduced in 2006. It carries the house codes established since 2002 — quartz tpt case, ice blue dial and in-house tourbillon, manual-winding — 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 movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
De Bethune
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 2002
- Founder
- David Zanetta & Denis Flageollet
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Ultra-Luxury & Haute Horlogerie
- Major collections
- DB28, DB25, DB Kind of Two, Starry Varius, Maxichrono
- Signature technologies
- Anti-magnetic silicon escapement · In-house hairspring production · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- In-house manual-winding, hand-finished · In-house automatic with 22k gold rotor · In-house automatic micro-rotor · In-house tourbillon, manual-winding
- Notable watches
- De Bethune DB28 37 mm Skeletonised Quartz (2002) · De Bethune DB28 41 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k (2002) · De Bethune DB28 42 mm Green Sapphire (2002) · De Bethune DB25 44 mm Silvered 18k (2002)
Brand history
De Bethune has spent more than 24 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's DB28, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
David Zanetta & Denis Flageollet established De Bethune in 2002, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every De Bethune calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
2002
David Zanetta & Denis Flageollet founds De Bethune in Switzerland.
2024
De Bethune continues to produce DB28, DB25, DB Kind of Two and other icons in limited numbers.